The bank says in a new report that global food prices have jumped 29 percent in the past year, and are just 3 percent below the all-time peak hit in 2008. Zoellick says the rising prices have hit people hardest in the developing world because they spend as much as half their income on food.
The World Bank estimates higher prices for corn, wheat and oil have pushed 44 million people into extreme poverty since last June.
Zoellick said he expects food prices to continue to rise, and that export bans and weather disruptions are partly to blame.