Posted on 01/17/2022 5:42:15 PM PST by Roman_War_Criminal
Less than 20% of the world’s population has managed to stockpile more than half of the globe’s maize and other grains, leading to steep price increases across the planet and dropping more countries into famine.
The hoarding is taking place in China.
COFCO Group, a major Chinese state-owned food processor, runs one of China’s largest food stockpiling bases, at the port of Dalian, in the northeastern part of the country. It stores beans and grains gathered from home and abroad in 310 huge silos. From there, the calories make their way throughout China via rail and sea.
China is maintaining its food stockpiles at a “historically high level,“ Qin Yuyun, head of grain reserves at the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, told reporters in November. “Our wheat stockpiles can meet demand for one and a half years. There is no problem whatsoever about the supply of food.”
According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, China is expected to have 69% of the globe’s maize reserves in the first half of crop year 2022, 60% of its rice and 51% of its wheat.
The projections represent increases of around 20 percentage points over the past 10 years, and the data clearly shows that China continues to hoard grain.
China spent $98.1 billion importing food (beverages are not included) in 2020, up 4.6 times from a decade earlier, according to the General Administration of Customs of China.
In the January-September period of 2021, China imported more food than it had since at least 2016, which is as far back as comparable data goes.
Over the past five years, China’s soybean, maize and wheat imports soared two- to twelvefold on aggressive purchases from the U.S., Brazil and other supplier nations. Imports of beef, pork, dairy and fruit jumped two- to fivefold.
Some of China’s imports are being aided by Chinese companies on overseas acquisition sprees. Leading meat processor WH Group acquired a European peer in June, while Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group purchased a leading New Zealand dairy company in 2019.
Food prices are on the rise around the world. The food price index, calculated by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, in November stood about 30% higher than a year earlier.
“Hoarding by China is one reason for rising prices,” said Akio Shibata, president of the Natural Resource Research Institute in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo.
China is importing more grain and other food because domestic production is unable to keep up with consumption.
While demand for feedstuffs for pigs and other livestock is expanding on the back of economic growth, the number of consumers looking for high-quality overseas produce is also increasing.
China’s production of wheat and other provisions as well as the amount of land used for agriculture plateaued in 2015. “Agricultural productivity in China is low due to the dispersion of farmland and soil contamination,” said Goro Takahashi, a professor emeritus at Aichi University and expert on Chinese agriculture. “The amount of agricultural production will continue to stall as farmers migrate to urban areas.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping keeps stressing the importance of food security. The National People’s Congress, China’s national legislature, in April adopted a food waste law that bans excessive leftovers. At the end of October, the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council instructed officials on how to reduce food waste.
And the NPC is not finished legislating on food security.
Chinese in their 50s and older experienced food shortages during the Cultural Revolution (1966 to 1976). “People of our generation remember hunger to a greater or lesser extent,” Xi once said, according to China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency.
Throughout history, food shortages have triggered popular unrest. They served as a contributing factor to uprisings that toppled Chinese dynasties.
And the world’s second largest economy now faces food uncertainties due to factors such as its deteriorating relations with the U.S. and Australia, which could drastically alter the import environment. In fact, this could be what is prodding China to boost its calorie reserves.
The number of people living in famine-struck regions topped 700 million in 2020, an increase of more than 100 million from five years earlier, according to the U.N.
“Although developed nations as a whole are responsible for famine,” Takahashi said, “China’s responsibility is heavier. China should contribute to resolving the maldistribution of food.”
Russia doesn’t have the capacity and even if they did they won’t prioritize them over Europe.
That said. China is perfectly willing to simply turn off its economy for a time to prosecute a war.
Lot easier to loot oil then food.
Why would they want to destroy the global economy? By doing so it would destroy their economy and their currency. They not only hold our tbills but most other countries as well because everyone has a trade deficit with them.
They want to be the world’s superpower and theor currency as the worlds standard.
They are stockpiling up as all nation’s should be doing.
How? From where? The middle east is the only place that can supply China. The US will frankly easily shut down all Chinese trade.
Will that save Taiwan? Probably not but it’ll cripple them badly for a long time
China might be hording grain but we make it. They have a 1.5 year supply..we have an endless supply.
Sorry but you have no idea what you are suggesting.
The scope of which we DEPEND on Chinese products is staggering.
One more shut down of “non-essential” businesses for a couple months and the world will be left in peril just for basic necessities.
Our withdraw from Chinese dependency will have to be gradual. That is a simple fact.
Chinese purchases of US grain fell 5% in 2021
Would that include the grain from the US farms they have purchased?
Right. They have long had plans to take over much of the world. The have infiltrated the USA in every corner from within. And even our army is of no use if it is controlled by the enemy.
Chances are the ChiComs do not farm their own acreage. Prolly renting out to a mega Farmer
p
Photo of apparent stockpiled food.....
Chinese words translate to:
Kill Off The Roundeyes. Ret’s Go Bann Donn.
Am I missing something?
My first thought is China will poison the food supplies in the United States.
There was a thriller novel (can’t remember the name) by a minor author and the precious wheat supply was destroyed by introduction of an agent that made the wheat shrivel up all over the US during growing season. But Russians had a genuine famine from wheat problems due to weather, so a worldwide loss of millions of lives took place.
War preparations?>>>>>>>>>\
My thought was the same. Its what the Chinese do before going to war, and they have done so for thousands of years.
It was Heartland by David Hagberg, Tor Books, 1983.
I know that this Virus is part of the plan.
The Communist Chinese government learned when dealing with President Trump that their demand for food far outweighed the U.S. demand for manufactured goods.
The scope of which we DEPEND on Chinese products is staggering.
No the scope of what we depend on CHEAP chinese products is staggering. Believe it or not, we can live without a 70 inch Tv, iPhone and electronic sh!t that goes bad in 5 year.
Has anyone pointed out yet that the claims of this article are non-sense?
What are you going on about? I didn’t say anything about the effects of shutting down Chinese trade...just the fact that we can.
The discussion is a possible motive to Chinese actions, one of which is war with us. Yes that would hurt us, duh. But that doesn’t dictate what we would have to do to win.
And to be fair, it would be worth it. 90% of our trade with the commies is crap we can get elsewhere while the important 10% we should be making ourselves anyway. Long term coexistence with the communists is a pipe dream, better they die sooner then later when they’re even stronger.
It’s going to be the land of rodents.
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