Volatile food prices are making the survival of the small farmer in developing countries nearly impossible. As the developed world weathers the storms of rising food prices through sophisticated commodities markets, smaller operations in Latin America, Asia and Africa are left to the mercy of massive price fluctuations.

We asked our listeners recently what is the one thing you can't live without. One Takeaway listener, named Mike said, "I absolutely could not live without ice cold beer. God bless America!" Indeed, God bless America, where if you're a beer drinker like Mike, you might find the cost of your pint going up. Is that because of the rice in global food prices? Or an increased supply because of down in the dumps recession times?

It's no secret that with a growing population and a shrinking place to put us all, many are anticipating a global food crisis in the near future — one that brings the scarcity of sustenance already present in poverty-stricken nations to all nations. And a hot commodity is also a high-priced one. Lester Brown, founder and president of the Earth Policy Institute, has a new story detailing what may prove the coming food crisis in the 21st century.

Commodity prices tanked on Thursday, as oil fell 8.6 percent and silver dropped 8 percent. This comes after disappointing economic reports showing that consumers are spending less due to rising food and energy prices, and business are hiring at a slower pace. We talk with The New York Times Wall Street and finance reporter Louise Story about the volatility of the commodities market.

If you love to eat nuts, you may have noticed that the cost of the great American pecan has gone through the roof over the past few years. You can thank the Chinese consumer for that. It turns out the rise in pecans at the grocery store is due to a slow and steady increase in demand from China.

Wednesday, the price of gold hit an all-time high, costing buyers over $1450 per ounce. Part of the reason for the rise in price is a fear of inflation, uncertainty about the situation in the Middle East, and the weakness of the U.S. dollar and the Euro. But another factor driving up the price of gold maybe its biggest buyers: India and China. Why is the price of gold so high, and who is buying? We learn more about gold and the current commodities market from Louise Story, Wall Street and finance reporter for The New York Times. 

Commodity prices are higher than they have been since before the financial crisis in 2008. But one commodity is doing better than all of the others: cotton. A pound of cotton currently costs more than $2 — that’s up from about 85 cents just a year ago, and higher than it has ever been in history. In fact, it is the second time since the Civil War that cotton has gone over $1. We talk with Gary Feist, a cotton farmer in Wakita, Oklahoma, who's been in the business for the past 15 years. Feist is also the manager of the Southern Kansas Cotton Growers Cooperative.

This week we’ve been covering the rise in oil prices during the unrest in Egypt. Yesterday anxiety in the region sent the price of a barrel of oil above $100. Additionally, the combination of high global food prices and high unemployment is making the prospect of these countries returning to some sense of normalcy seem untenable in the near future.

New data this week from the analysis group Hedgeye shows that some of our favorite breakfast items like orange juice and coffee are rising in cost so much that they could be considered “luxury items.” Some are blaming U.S. monetary policy for this inflation, but our guest Louise Story from our partner The New York Times says it’s more complicated than that. This story, she says, is a little bit global warming, a little bit economic recovery, a little bit politics.

Oil prices have been floating around $90 a barrel for weeks, but now, the turmoil in Egypt has pushed the price up. Crude oil jumped close to 4% on Friday and then 3.2% yesterday to settle at $92.19 a barrel. However, the output of crude hasn’t changed in the region, so what exactly explains the sharp rise in prices?

New data out by the United Nations shows that world food prices rose by 32 percent in the second half of 2010. Food prices for staples haven’t been this high in two years. The last time they reached these levels, food shortages sparked riots in poor nations. Is another food crisis on the horizon for struggling nations? And what does this mean for Americans?

After Congress passed the tax cut package last week, the price of oil went up — a sign that traders may be counting on higher demand for gasoline, home heating oil and other commodities as the economy recovers. But is spending more money on gas really the way to boost a fragile economy?

The price of oil could create a commodities spike and stir up trouble in the economy. Of course, it could also be a sign of improvement. 

A recent heat wave in Russia coupled with extraordinarily dry conditions has been feeding the most widespread wildfires in the nation’s recent history. The fires stretch from central Russia to near Moscow and are generating a devastating plume of smoke that has killed 52 people and destroyed over 2,000 homes. Those massive fires are having a secondary (and potentially more lasting) effect as they have threatened the Russian wheat crops, which make up about eight percent of the world’s wheat production.  

Oil prices rose above $61 a barrel in Asian trading this morning, recouping some losses after tumbling 17 percent last week. But gasoline reserves in the U.S. are growing, showing continuing low demand for crude. In Economics 101, you learn that when demand drops, so does price, so why are oil prices rising? Joining The Takeaway to analyze the turbulent oil market is BBC Business Correspondent Mark Gregory.

As we look for alternatives to oil and try to develop new technologies, we are tapping into an entire periodic table of new important commodities. These rare earth metals are the basis of a whole range of new "green" products. Lisa Margonelli is here to help us understand them. She's a regular Takeaway contributor who writes the energy blog for The Atlantic and is the author of Oil on the Brain.