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Hot Summer Sparks Global Food Crisis
Independent (UK) ^ | 8-31-2003 | Geoffrey Lean

Posted on 08/30/2003 4:01:46 PM PDT by blam

Hot summer sparks global food crisis

By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor
31 August 2003

This summer's heatwave has drastically cut harvests across Europe, plunging the world into an unprecedented food crisis, startling new official figures show.

Separate calculations by two leading institutions monitoring the global harvest show that the scorching weather has severely reduced European grain production, ensuring that the world will not produce enough to feed itself for the fourth year in succession, and plunging stocks to the lowest level on record. And experts predict that the damage to crops will be found to be even greater when the full cost of the heat is known.

They say that, as a result, food prices will rise worldwide, and hunger will increase in the world's poorest countries. And they warn that this is just a foretaste of what will happen as global warming takes hold.

Sunshine and warmth are, of course, good for plants and there were hopes that this year's good summer would produce a bumper harvest. But excessive heat and low rainfall damage crops, and the heatwave - which brought temperatures of more than 100F to Britain for the first time, and gave France 11 consecutive days above 95F, killing more than 1,000 people - has done enormous damage.

The US Department of Agriculture has cut its forecast for this year's grain harvest by 32 million tons, mainly because of the European crop reductions. On Thursday, the International Grains Council - an intergovernmental body - reduced its own prediction even further, by 36 million tons, as a result of "heat and drought, particularly in Europe."

The damage has been most severe in Eastern Europe, which is now bringing in its worst wheat crop in three decades: in Ukraine, the harvest has been cut from 21 million tons last year to five million, while Romania has its worst crop on record. Germany is the worst-hit EU country: some farmers in the south-east have lost half their grain harvest. Official British figures will not be published until October.

The final tally of the summer's damage is likely to be worse still. Lester Brown, the president of Washington's authoritative Earth Policy Institute, predicts that it will cut another 20 million tons off the world harvest, making this a catastrophic year.

It has come at a time when world food supplies were already at their most precarious ever. The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century, driving stocks well below the safety margin to their lowest levels in the 40 years that records have been kept. The amount of grain produced for each person on earth is now less than at any time in more than three decades.

Until about a month ago, this year had been expected to produce a reasonable harvest, allowing some recovery. But the heatwave has now ensured that it will make things even worse, and experts say that the crisis will deepen as global warming increases.

Grain prices have already increased, and Mr Brown warns that in coming years they may move to a permanently higher level. This would encourage greater production, he says, but at the expense of the world's hungry, who could then afford even less food, and of the environment, as farming intensified.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Germany; News/Current Events; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: crisis; environment; food; foodcrisis; globalwarming; harvest; heatwave; hot; summer; usda
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Remember that the Europeans won't eat GM grain. Oh well!
1 posted on 08/30/2003 4:01:46 PM PDT by blam
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To: farmfriend; Ernest_at_the_Beach
One of yours.
2 posted on 08/30/2003 4:02:42 PM PDT by blam
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To: blam
"ensuring that the world will not produce enough to feed itself for the fourth year in succession, and plunging stocks to the lowest level on record."

sucks to be Euro. I have my hamburgers and steaks ready for MOnday already!
3 posted on 08/30/2003 4:03:56 PM PDT by Pikamax
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To: Pikamax
Was US wheat production increased due to the coolest summer on record?
4 posted on 08/30/2003 4:04:52 PM PDT by gitmo (Americans are learning world geography ... one war at a time.)
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To: blam
"The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century, driving stocks well below the safety margin to their lowest levels in the 40 years that records have been kept. The amount of grain produced for each person on earth is now less than at any time in more than three decades."

?????????? Am I missing something here? I really stink at word problems but if this was expressed differently, I don't see how this would occur without starvation long before this point.

5 posted on 08/30/2003 4:09:00 PM PDT by OpusatFR
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To: blam
"...The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century, ..."

Interesting bit of news there.. I wonder why we haven't seen any food riots?

6 posted on 08/30/2003 4:11:25 PM PDT by Ken522
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To: blam; AAABEST; Ace2U; Alamo-Girl; Alas; amom; AndreaZingg; Anonymous2; ApesForEvolution; ...
Rights, farms, environment ping.

Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this list.

7 posted on 08/30/2003 4:11:58 PM PDT by farmfriend ( Isaiah 55:10,11)
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To: gitmo

Looks like those darn camels in germany and france are eating to much grain!!!!
8 posted on 08/30/2003 4:13:29 PM PDT by jocko12
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To: blam
Note To Europe: Ye Reap What Ye Sow - So Eat Your Words (as that's all you ever do is talk about things). If your precious WTO hadn't hobbled the US farmers, there would be a surplus of grain and your piddly little farms wouldn't even be required to feed your own people. GM grains are designed to withstand drought - I'll bet you want to buy some? Nah, sorry, you can't have any now, we won't sell it to you (it's for your own good).

Once again, the EU's version of "pride" shows just how stupid those people are. Let 'em eat cake. (Oops, that takes flour.)

9 posted on 08/30/2003 4:13:59 PM PDT by 11B3 (Looking for a belt-fed, multi-barreled 12 guage. It's Liberal season, no daily limit.)
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To: Ken522
Because of the reserves.

When they are gone...
10 posted on 08/30/2003 4:14:45 PM PDT by null and void
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To: blam
Good...Trade them 50 pounds of grain in exchange for a barrel of oil...
11 posted on 08/30/2003 4:16:13 PM PDT by tubebender
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Comment #12 Removed by Moderator

To: 11B3
Let them drink wine, to paraphrase a fine Euro lady. The vinters in France are very excited about their harvest this year, so have a little cheese with that and remember, man does not live by bread alone.
13 posted on 08/30/2003 4:34:38 PM PDT by jocon307
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To: spongebob58
Should help next year's balance of trade. The US, Canada, and Argentina will make out well.

I'd include the Ukraine, too. They are a huge producer of wheat and other crops and the Ukraine could really stick it to Europe by holding back wheat sales. :-)

14 posted on 08/30/2003 4:34:46 PM PDT by RayChuang88
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To: OpusatFR
I don't see how this would occur without starvation long before this point.

Remember, this century is not quite three years old.

15 posted on 08/30/2003 4:39:33 PM PDT by Friend of thunder (No sane person wants war, but oppressors want oppression.)
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To: blam
The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century,..

What a stupid statement since the century is only 2 years old.

16 posted on 08/30/2003 5:00:47 PM PDT by Mike Darancette (Por La Raza Mierda.)
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To: Ken522
"...The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century, ..."

Interesting bit of news there.. I wonder why we haven't seen any food riots?

You haven't parsed the sentence klintonially. "This century" is the 21st century, which is four year old. "This century" sounds a lot more scary than "the last four years".

Of course, even that statement is true, it meant the disaster started on the klintons' watch, but they didn't mention that.

17 posted on 08/30/2003 5:01:28 PM PDT by 300winmag (All that is gold does not glitter.)
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To: spongebob58; RayChuang88
"Should help next year's balance of trade. The US, Canada, and Argentina will make out well."

"I'd include the Ukraine, too."

My very first thought on reading the article was "I wonder how much the extended growing season will help more northerly grain-producing nations".

18 posted on 08/30/2003 5:29:02 PM PDT by Wonder Warthog (The Hog of Steel)
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To: blam
The world has eaten more grain than it has produced every year so far this century, driving stocks well below the safety margin to their lowest levels in the 40 years that records have been kept. The amount of grain produced for each person on earth is now less than at any time in more than three decades.

How come this is not affecting the prices to the US farmers? Something doesn't compute here.

19 posted on 08/30/2003 5:29:59 PM PDT by Western Phil
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To: blam
This Scheisse is so logicaly inconsistent, I actually laughed.
20 posted on 08/30/2003 5:33:26 PM PDT by patton (I wish we could all look at the evil of abortion with the pure, honest heart of a child.)
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