At agriculture college this subject is a constant topic. When I was studying the U.K. was 70% self sufficient now its 50%.
This is an interesting read.
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Burn him!
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There’s an imminent post crisis!
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The coronaviris thread is quarantined for review after many complaints made about a post made there. I’m cooking dinner so it will have to wait a while.
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Ok, enjoy your dinner.
Too late, but thanks anyway.
The world makes plenty of food. In the US, more than plenty, and that should be comforting to Brits as well. The problem isn’t a food shortage, the problem is a supply shortage brought about by panic and hoarding. Stop people buying more than they need, and all will be well with the food supply.
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I think the supply chain could be the fly in the ointment of the food supply as this situation drags on longer.
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Cute fellow - and it’s the name of a local art gallery / sculpture forge
Please to say I muted it a few days ago. The forum and life is much better without such things when you’re dealing the consequences everyday anyway.
We live in a market economy. In the richer countries, if food is short, we just see a price increase which is unwelcome, but affordable to many. Spare a thought for those people in Zimbabwe who have been booted off their nice fertile farms so that the land can be used to grow nice little courgettes that can be air freighted to posh supermarket shelves in rich countries. Those price increases which seem small to us will be just enough to ensure that we get fed at the expense of someone elso who is skint.
The UK, despite having a very well established, innovative and efficient agriculture, is a very, very log way indeed from being self sufficient. The problem, as ever, is overpopulation.
So yes, sure, the world makes plenty of food available for the highest bidder. Making enough food for 8 billion people is an entirely different matter.
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In our (for now) wealthy countries, it is less of a food crisis and more of a demand crisis (panic buying).
Farmers are not going to be taking time off in any country. The variety of availability may dip but ultimately the supply will remain (I hope). 75% of food where I am is imported. If this prompts a rejuvenation of the national farming industry and repopulation of rural areas, that would be great.
The real food crisis is probably for the homeless where their shelters and shelter provided rations are reportedly drying up as panic buying and the resulting retail led rationing means no one is in a position to buy extra to donate. For any country experiencing that, a bit of shameful introspection is called for (more than usual that is).
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I muted the coronavirus thread. I have enough of it in tv. Try to not watching it more than 15 minutes per day. To keep my mental safe.
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wise.
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I don’t know the UK, but the US is by far a net exporter of food. None of what we eat comes at the expense of Zimbabweans. Indeed, Zimbabwe was a net food exporter too, before Zimbabweans destroyed their own agricultural sector. And it had nothing to do with courgettes for rich westerners.
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Why would Zimbabwe destroy their own agriculture ?
It seems counterintuitive to destroy something that sustains it’s own people without external influence.
Did they diversify into industrial production ?
Or tourism perhaps ?
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Mugabe land appropriation. Not a succesful social experiment.
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Because Robert Mugabe was a corrupt thief who screwed his own people. Confiscated all the farms and gave them to cronies who knew zilch about farming; everyone skimmed off the top until there was no top (or even bottom), and now they have to import food.
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@frenchrooster I feel you! First it’s been three years of the news talking almost continuously about the Spray Tanned One. Now we’ve added The Virus. I’m almost reduced to watching Sponge Bob. Of course there’s always books and music 
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Although the local farm shop had more customers than they could deal with over the weekend, the allotments were empty.
I’ll be planting potatoes this week, and my hens have extra rations.
I have 5 small raised beds, the potatoes will go into tubs, I’ve had no success with asparagus, but broad beans grow well. I must plant more greens this year - chard has done well.