'Radical rethink' needed on food

Miyazaki

I have a brita water filter that works wonders. I agree though that otherwise tap water is basically unpalletable.

Miyazaki

Hilary Benn said:

"Supposing a new disease came along and affected your staple crop. What are you going to do then?

"So therefore it is a combination of strong domestic food production, but also having a global market in which people are able to buy from each other, that gives you the best combination of ensuring that you can feed people."

What is implied but never actually said is that the monocultures we have are completely unsustainable. The root cause is in fact not the lack of food but the increasing human population that is unsustainable.

Benn also said "science would also have to make a contribution in raising food production. " I hope he doesn't mean GM food as that could be one of the greatest disasters ever known.

Instead of rationing food, we must ration children. It is not so much a problem in the West, but I think if we are to administer aid to 3rd world countries they we need to insist that they have strict population controls in place. Half the reason there are famines in these places is because of families having child after child after child.

I totally understand that is because of high child mortality, but then this wouldn't be a problem with sufficient first world aid.

Sonic67

I wouldn't drink bottled water at home. I think those who drink it at home as its healthier for you would be a bit like running your cooker on batteries. If your tap water does taste bad then fine though.

If I go to a pub and I'm driving then I drink sparkling water as out of a choice between fizzy water and fizzy coke I think fizzy water is healthier.

Sonic67

I imagine that the 3rd world countries would say that their population has a minimal effect on the planet. Our population is driving round in cars, has big factories, and has lots of electrical gadgets which are totally unnecessary and we are the ones who should cut back on our expanding population for the sake of the planet.

(Oh and I have no kids.)

ps3mad

Stuff it! Eat,drink and be merry

Miyazaki

India and China between them constitute 1/2 of the world's population. OK, China are making some attempt to curb their horrendous population problem, but India don't appear to be doing so.

How many years at 10% GDP growth will it take these countries to catch up with and outstrip the west on the terms you outline above?

Gadgets and technology is not the issue at hand here, food is. Everyone, no matter what "world" they live in, need to eat.

Grrrrrowler

I think the 3rd world countries would rather have more food than worry about how big the engines in our cars are...

Less mouths = more food - surely that's the key equation?

Miyazaki

If we take the world population to be at 7 billion, which most estimates put it at, at the moment, then our population at present is unsustainable.

Many estimates suggest that over the next 90 years the global population might be at 12 billion. When you consider that at the start of the 20th century the population was roughly 1.5 billion, the population growth over 2 centuries is absolutely abhorrent.

The carrying capacity of planet Earth is approximately 1 billion, if all the world was to live like we do in the West. The carrying capacity basically is the human population that the Earth can sustain in the long term.

The situation is not looking bright.

Foebane72

Oh, *beep* off.

HMHB

The 2 key words here for me are "hilary" and "benn" then I immediately switch off and don't listen to anything more.