Climate crisis could contribute to a global food shortage by 2050, US special envoy on food security warns
Written by Gabrielle Chan from the Guardian
Cary Fowler says world needs to produce 50-60% more food by middle of the century but global heating is expected to reduce yield rates
The world could fall short of food by 2050 due to the falling crop yields, insufficient investment in agricultural research and trade shocks, according to Joe Biden’s special envoy for food security, Dr Cary Fowler.
Fowler, who is also known as the “father” of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a global store of seeds for the most significant crops, said studies by agricultural economists show the world needs to produce 50-60% more food by 2050 in order to feed its growing population. But crop yields rates are projected to decline by between 3-12% as a result of global heating.
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Written by Gabrielle Chan from the Guardian
Cary Fowler says world needs to produce 50-60% more food by middle of the century but global heating is expected to reduce yield rates
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The world could fall short of food by 2050 due to the falling crop yields, insufficient investment in agricultural research and trade shocks, according to Joe Biden’s special envoy for food security, Dr Cary Fowler.
Fowler, who is also known as the “father” of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a global store of seeds for the most significant crops, said studies by agricultural economists show the world needs to produce 50-60% more food by 2050 in order to feed its growing population. But crop yields rates are projected to decline by between 3-12% as a result of global heating.
Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter
Continue reading...
Since you’re here …
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. And unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can. So you can see why we need to ask for your help. The Guardian’s independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our perspective matters – because it might well be your perspective, too.
If everyone who reads our reporting, who likes it, helps fund it, our future would be much more secure. Support the Guardian – it only takes a minute. Thank you.