Rice Shortage?

We've been hearing about some kind of rice shortage and that people are stocking up on it and that some major chains like Wal-Mart are beginning to ration it so here's a couple links on the subject. Apparently they say, the run on rice is more based on fear than reality. But, one other interesting note is that people are stocking up on food staples because of the economy, as noted in the UPI story below.

Run on rice reaches United States

USDA's Schafer reassures no rice shortage