Title Should Read;
Wheat Crop Shortages, T-Minus 10 Weeks...
The world is only ten weeks away from running out of wheat supplies
after stocks fell to their lowest levels for 50 years.
The crisis has pushed prices to an all-time high and could lead to
further hikes in the price of bread, beer, biscuits and other basic
foods.
It could also exacerbate serious food shortages in developing
countries especially in Africa.
The crisis comes after two successive years of disastrous wheat
harvests, which saw production fall from 624m to 600m tonnes,
according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO).
Experts blame climate change as heatwaves caused a slump in harvests
last year in eastern Europe, Canada, Morocco and Australia, all big
wheat producers.
Booming populations and a switch to a meat-rich diet in the developing
world also mean that about 110m tons of the world's annual wheat crop
is being diverted to feed livestock.
Short term pressures have compounded the problem. Speculative buying
by investors gambling on further price rises has further pushed up
prices.
Though shortages are often blamed on the use of land for biofuel
crops, the main biofuel cereal crop is maize, not wheat. Farmers have
brought millions of acres of fallow land into production and the FAO
predicts that the shortages could be eliminated within 12 months.
Your Thoughts?
Wheat Crop Shortages, T-Minus 10 Weeks...
The world is only ten weeks away from running out of wheat supplies
after stocks fell to their lowest levels for 50 years.
The crisis has pushed prices to an all-time high and could lead to
further hikes in the price of bread, beer, biscuits and other basic
foods.
It could also exacerbate serious food shortages in developing
countries especially in Africa.
The crisis comes after two successive years of disastrous wheat
harvests, which saw production fall from 624m to 600m tonnes,
according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO).
Experts blame climate change as heatwaves caused a slump in harvests
last year in eastern Europe, Canada, Morocco and Australia, all big
wheat producers.
Booming populations and a switch to a meat-rich diet in the developing
world also mean that about 110m tons of the world's annual wheat crop
is being diverted to feed livestock.
Short term pressures have compounded the problem. Speculative buying
by investors gambling on further price rises has further pushed up
prices.
Though shortages are often blamed on the use of land for biofuel
crops, the main biofuel cereal crop is maize, not wheat. Farmers have
brought millions of acres of fallow land into production and the FAO
predicts that the shortages could be eliminated within 12 months.
Your Thoughts?
Comment