Food crunch: population, biofuels are eating our lunch
Experts have been speculating about a global food shortage for years, but most of us in the developed world have yet to see the phenomenon first hand. For people in developing countries, however, the rising price of staples like corn, rice, and wheat has become more than a minor annoyance. Steadily rising food prices have already set off protests and rioting in countries like Cameroon and Indonesia. So, why is the world suddenly feeling the food crunch? Basically, the food supplying is getting stretched by a rising standard of living in developing nations, growing world population, and, of course, the increased demand for biofuels.
In order to feed 9 billion people by 2050, the farmers of the world are going to have to boost their yield by about 50%. Increasing the world's harvest by half would be an impressive feat, but accomplishing this along side a booming agro-fuels market is going to take a herculean effort. Personally, I take almost every opportunity to bash biofuels, but they only seem to get more popular -- this year, about 25% of corn grown in the US will be used to produce ethanol.
On top of an already complicated situation, governments are reacting in ways that could create further instability in prices. Egypt, China, India, and Argentina have started placing greater limits on their grain exports, which will translate into further shortages for their trading partners. Countries like Mexico are reconsidering GMOs as an option to increase production. Are genetically modified foods the future? Are you going veggie to reduce your demand on agricultural production? Maybe it's time to start a farming operation? Looks like there's some serious money in it.
In order to feed 9 billion people by 2050, the farmers of the world are going to have to boost their yield by about 50%. Increasing the world's harvest by half would be an impressive feat, but accomplishing this along side a booming agro-fuels market is going to take a herculean effort. Personally, I take almost every opportunity to bash biofuels, but they only seem to get more popular -- this year, about 25% of corn grown in the US will be used to produce ethanol.
On top of an already complicated situation, governments are reacting in ways that could create further instability in prices. Egypt, China, India, and Argentina have started placing greater limits on their grain exports, which will translate into further shortages for their trading partners. Countries like Mexico are reconsidering GMOs as an option to increase production. Are genetically modified foods the future? Are you going veggie to reduce your demand on agricultural production? Maybe it's time to start a farming operation? Looks like there's some serious money in it.
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