Will Japan Run Out of Food?
January 11, 2010 Featured, Politics, World
Who knew that a drought in Australia would have such long-lasting implications for the rest of the world? In 2008, the land down under suffered a devastating blow when it failed to reap sufficient yields of staple grains like wheat. As a result, countries like Japan that rely heavily on imports to feed its people had to pay much more to get the foods we’ve become accustomed to. Now, a year and a half later, food prices have yet to return to 2008 levels. But a higher cost of food isn’t the only problem facing Japan in the coming years. In addition to food scarcity, we could be looking at limited supplies of water also.
With many nations enjoying a higher standard of living, millions of wealthier people are now vying for the same limited resources many western nations have enjoyed in excess for decades. Nations like Japan, who rely heavily on imports, would see import costs quickly rise at the same time as climate change affects the annual rains. One of the ways governments stay in power is by ensuring people have access to food and water. Sure, people bitch and moan about the stupid decisions they make, but the average person will start grabbing weapons and rioting if forced to go without food and drink.
It’s hard to believe that as little as a decade ago we took for granted the the reliable availability of food. However, how can governments ensure they can feed their own population while simultaneously preventing the starvation of other nations?
Doing More With Less
In the next 45 years, it’s expected that Japan’s population will fall from 130,000,000 to somewhere around 90,000,000. While many people see this as a negative, it could very well be a positive. We can see time and time again that when a country enjoys a higher standard of living, the people have fewer children. The reason for Japan’s declining birthrate is slightly more complex than this, but it doesn’t need to be seen as a bad thing. If there are 40-million fewer people to feed by 2055, then there will be less need for Japan to use strong-arm negotiations to ensure their people have the resources necessary to enjoy living.
The world’s population is expected to be somewhere around 9-billion by this time, also. This is a ridiculous number that shows just how incapable we humans are of understanding the poetic justice of cause and effect. With only 6.8-billion people on the Earth at the start of this year, we’re seeing almost one third of them go hungry for most of the year. Just how the heck are we supposed to feed another two billion mouths?
There’s no denying that the next 40 years will push human ingenuity to a whole new level, but steps also need to be taken to ensure that everyone does their part to consume less food. Annual hot dog eating competitions might be fun, but it’s also a display of excessive waste and lunacy. Most of us do not quite realize the scale of this issue, myself included. But it’s going to be one of the most serious problems that we humans have ever faced.
“The Perfect Storm” Is Not Just Cliché, It’s Possible
I hate to use the phrase “perfect storm” because it seems these two words are used in every second sentence when discussing humanity’s future, but here we are. In order to feed such an incredible number of people, humanity will need to remember our very first industry: agriculture.
Urban sprawl may need to stop as we start to recover developed land for agricultural use. However, there are problems with this. Agriculture is never a sure thing. New diseases are being discovered all the time around the world, destroying our crops and livestock. Chemical fertilizers are incredibly CO2-heavy during manufacture and will likely not be permitted much longer. Invasive insects have enjoyed a spike in numbers due to odd weather patterns, and important insects such as bees have been dying off in such numbers that hundreds of species may be on the verge of extinction.
So what’s the answer? I hate to say it, but we’re now wholly dependent on science. Even if we were to “roll back” our lifestyle by 500 years it wouldn’t be enough to solve the problems we’ll be facing in the near future.
A large percentage of the world’s crops are vulnerable to destruction by weeds, fungi, and insects. We need to find a way to prevent it from happening if we are serious about both maintaining and increasing food production in the near future.
Naturally climate change, disease, and bugs aren’t our only enemies here; Humans are just as dangerous. Political and economic situations can quickly alter the balance of our food and water supplies, quickly escalating any problem we might face.
The next quarter century will either see humans make some incredible strides towards self-sustainability, or a devolution into warlike tribes protecting what few resources we have available.
What’s your take on this problem? Will import-dependent nations like Japan suffer in the face of global climate change? Will the world run out of food? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Comments (4)
The easiest solution would be for us to eat the thousand kilograms of grain instead of using it to raise a few kilograms of beef for our Texas Burgers.
How is anyone supposed to live the American Dream if they can’t eat a few kilograms of beef in their Texas burgers?
The American Dream is what’s making us run out of food! (And oil, and breathable air, and glaciers in the mountains, and and and . . .)
Sounds like the world either needs to reach the conscience of Japan or implementing government policies to limit births.