It’s long been understood that precipitation changes from global warming (i.e. droughts and floods) pose major crop problems. However, what has not been so widely discussed up to now is how much heat, itself, could cause considerable crop problems. Crops scientists are now finding, though, that this is a major problem.. already.
Peanut Butter Prices Rising Due to Climate Change
Jeannie wrote about peanut butter becoming more scarce a couple months ago. As she noted at the time, incredible U.S. drought was the cause of this. These are just some of the effects of global warming that we have been warned about for decades, of course.
Now, with scarcity, prices rise. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that several major peanut butter brands are raising prices, considerably.
New York Times, Oxfam, & Others Pick Up the Climate Change–Food Insecurity Story
You may be getting tired of my stories on climate change and food, but I think this is a critical topic already significantly affecting the lives of tens of millions of people (or more) that will become increasingly important in the years to come (if we don’t do something to address climate change NOW).
I’m not the only one trying to draw a little more attention to this critical topic, but not many big media agencies have been doing so (yet). This weekend, though, the New York Times published an above-the-fold, 4000-word, front-page story on the matter! The title: A Warming Planet Struggles to Feed Itself.
Food Prices Rising Fast in U.S., More to Come?
I wrote last week that we should probably cover the link between food and broader issues a little more here on Eat Drink Better. With a nudge from our site director, Becky Striepe, and network founder/publisher, David Anderson, I’ve decided to cover the complicated but important topic of rising food prices today.
The LA Times had a decent piece on this topic recently that included a number of interesting food statistics. What of the following did you know?
Which is Better for the Environment, Local or Vegetarian?
Which is better for the environment, eating vegetarian or eating local? A team of researchers from Pennsylvania think they’ve found the clear answer.