![]() Well, orthodox agriculture is not natural, it’s extremely damaging to the environment and if GM crops can be produced that require less herbicide, or pesticide, or water, then I think we as a society have to understand that there are some benefits involved. It’s often alleged that GM is not natural. Genetic modification (GM) is another issue where a poor public understanding of the underlying technology has led to an understandable concern. And it goes far beyond the gas pump: Eggs are up 32, poultry is up 16.6, milk is up 15. They are basically saying: try this, this tastes just as good, it’s healthier for you, it’s less expensive and it’s certainly a lot better for the environment. READ MORE: War, supply chain fueling global food shortage. But it’s interesting because they are marketing plant-based burgers not to vegans or vegetarians, but to people who enjoy a beef burger. There will always be resistance to new technologies. I was in San Francisco last autumn and I was surprised to see the number of posters up urging a vegan diet - in 20 years time, will eating meat in San Francisco be as socially unacceptable as drinking and driving is now? “Meatless meats” are gaining traction but there’s also resistance to the idea of eating food grown in test tubes. Do people understand that eating beef is significantly more demanding on the environment than eating pork or chicken? Do people know where their food is coming from? But we are already seeing an uptick in interest in vegan and vegetarian diets - or perhaps eating vegetarian meals three or five times per week. The campaign should start with consumers being made aware of what they’re eating and the consequences of that. If the populations of India or China were to adopt the same meat-rich diet as America that would be extremely demanding on global resources. ![]() One of the pressures is that developing societies are shifting to a meat-based diet. For a sustainable future, I suspect that quite radical change to our diets is needed. A kilogram of beef is about 30-times more demanding on the environment than a kilogram of plant protein. ![]() One of the greatest causes of biodiversity loss and therefore extinction is the conversion of forest and woodland into grazing for cattle. Why are meat-rich diets such a big problem? Another factor is the balance of vegetable-based diets versus meat-based diets. There are about 5,500 different varieties of edible plants, and yet we have found ourselves concentrating on a very narrow selection. But I’m confident there are solutions if we make the right decisions now. ![]() The Panama Virus wiped it out because there was a lack of variability within the crop. In the 1950s, the global banana supply was largely based on a single variety called the Gros Michel. If a particular pest or pathogen arises, or a particular vulnerability to changing climates, the entire crop becomes vulnerable because of the lack of genetic variability within it. Currently, only 12 crops account for 75% of all human calories. High yield is important for feeding a growing population but it means that our food crops are very homogenous. Over thousands of years of agriculture, humans have selected plants for particular characteristics, typically their yield. How vulnerable are our food sources to climate change or disease? ![]()
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