Global food shortages

[stripee]

There are rising prices for food and fuel. Wheat and grain prices are shooting up. So animal feed becomes more expensive and animal products in the shops cost more. Biofuels are taking the place of crops grown for food.
China and India are becoming more affluent and switching to a Western diet, and will soon have more cars.
Is there any solution, and will we become short of food in the near future Will more and more land be needed for agriculture in the future? And less for wildlife and environment as our population grows.

[Paul mabbott]

Two ways out of this - one is to eat much less meat.
The other, as your final sentence suggests, is to stop human population growth.

Originally Posted by stripee

There are rising prices for food and fuel. Wheat and grain prices are shooting up. So animal feed becomes more expensive and animal products in the shops cost more. Biofuels are taking the place of crops grown for food.
China and India are becoming more affluent and switching to a Western diet, and will soon have more cars.
Is there any solution, and will we become short of food in the near future Will more and more land be needed for agriculture in the future? And less for wildlife and environment as our population grows.

[Gill Catton]

I wish it was that simple Paul,
Things is its pushing the price of sooo much up....

For us we just largely winge about the extra pence on a loaf of bread but for others in other countries the cost of grain determines if they eat at all.

I find myself wondering if we will one day be fighting wars over food rather than oil.

I hope shortly we'll come up with something better and cheaper than biofuels and that will help alot.

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by stripee

There are rising prices for food and fuel. Wheat and grain prices are shooting up. So animal feed becomes more expensive and animal products in the shops cost more. Biofuels are taking the place of crops grown for food.
China and India are becoming more affluent and switching to a Western diet, and will soon have more cars.
Is there any solution, and will we become short of food in the near future Will more and more land be needed for agriculture in the future? And less for wildlife and environment as our population grows.

If they keep building houses on the land we will all starve..

[Paul mabbott]

I didn't say it would be easy.
Basically, if the human population keeps growing then eventually disease, starvation or war will come along and control the population for us.

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

I wish it was that simple Paul,
Things is its pushing the price of sooo much up....

For us we just largely winge about the extra pence on a loaf of bread but for others in other countries the cost of grain determines if they eat at all.

I find myself wondering if we will one day be fighting wars over food rather than oil.

I hope shortly we'll come up with something better and cheaper than biofuels and that will help alot.

[stripee]

I think the food and fuel issue will become more and more problematic and wildlife and the environment will pay the price. It's politically too difficult to change people's lifestyles, and the system in a consumer society relies on consumption. Governments will only do what is economically viable and keeps industry happy. Individuals can do the best they can and education may help in schools, but many won't care until it affects them. It's an old human problem, as described in "Collapse" by Jared Diamond.

[hobble]

Or greed, so many people these days seem unable to live without consuming so much stuff. I find it sad and incomprehensible that some people just want and want, instead of trying to just be happy with what they have.
Food is such an easy commodity to come by here and so much is wasted. ( I see this with my children who just take all food for granted.)

Unfortunately I think this begins with TV advertising and young children, as well as Saturday shopping as a family outing followed by a McDonalds.
What hope is there for these generations of families who believe this is all there is to life?