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Climate change could have serious consequences for our ability to produce enough food in a world with a growing population.
Start your research with as It all started in 2007Climate changes were responsible for around 30% of the year-to-year variations in tonnes of crops per hectare. It is remarkable that the global agricultural system has remained relatively robust in these circumstances, and that major food shortages are rare.
However, food prices have risen in recent years. More volatile. While there are many influences on food prices – including crop yield, weather variations, international trade, speculation in food commodity markets, and land management practices – mostly open trading systems have allowed food shortages in some places to be offset by surpluses, and increased production, elsewhere.
The world appears to be moving towards greater trade barriers at a moment when climate change is intensifying. These stabilising effects may soon fail. Prices could rise rapidly, putting pressure on poorer countries and the budgets for poor people in rich ones.
Despite a significant increase in crop yield per hectare over the last 50 year, recent research has shown that the rate of This growthThis has been slower than in previous decades.
Recent researchNegative weather has canceled out up to 30% of the expected growth in European crops.
It is concerning, however, that the most significant changes tend to be made in sub-Saharan Africa (including South Africa) that are at. Climate impacts are at high riskFood affordability and availability
Rising temperatures
This is especially true in the case barley, maizes, millets, pulses and rice. It seems that the countries most at high risk of food shortages also suffer the most. Temperatures rising. This seems to bear out the finding from the world’s premier climate science advisers, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change(IPCC) states that higher temperatures and more extreme weather events related to climate change will affect the reliability of food production. The most recent IPCC ReportThese conclusions are also supported.
Another change was noted by the IPCCIt is the result of rising heat and increased rainfall caused by climate change, which is reducing soil productivity. This is due in part to the loss of soil nutrients, organic matter, and can have negative effects on crop yields. These negative effects will be exacerbated by rising sea levels. Saltwater intrusionsFlooding permanent crop land.
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Recent modellingThere are large variations in soil loss in wheat fields and maize fields due to differences in tropical climate regions as well as regions with large amounts of flat and dry terrain. The losses range from less that 1 tonne per square metre in central Asia to more than 100 tonnes per square kilometre in south-east Asia. The strong influence of climate and topography on simulated erosion is evident in five of the largest producers of wheat and maize: Brazil, China, India and India have high levels of water erosion, whereas the annual median values for Russia and the United States are lower.
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To keep the world nourished, we need to adapt quickly to climate changes
However, poor land management in Europe and the USA has been greatly ameliorated by the increased use chemical fertilisers, irrigation, and which has been able offset a large amount of soil degradation. For example: One studyResearch has shown that US corn yields have declined from seven to just over one tonne per ha over the past 100 year without fertiliser. This is due to soil quality declining. Fertilizer has allowed yields to be maintained in large quantities, even though it comes at a significant annual cost to farmers, which is more than half a million dollars.
Fertilizer and food
These results could have serious implications for the poorer regions of the world, where soil quality is declining but they lack the resources to compensate with fertilisers. The results are even more concerning when climate change is involved.
In response to rising temperatures, many aspects of land management have changed. This includes the ability to grow different crops or the same crops at different locations. These changes have led to significantly higher food yields in many areas of the world. Land managers will need to adapt their strategies to deal with changes in climate.
But, if climate changes result in simultaneous failures of major crops such wheat, maize, soybeans and other crops in two or more places Regions with major breadbaskets(the regions that produce the most food) then there are risks of food becoming too expensive in poorer areas of the globe due to rising prices.
