The American food supply is at risk because of corporate greed, bad policy and international tensions. If you don’t already know that this is a serious issue, then you need to read this article. I’ll explain why the world faces an ongoing global shortage of food and how it could soon affect your household.
The next food shortage will be worse than the Great Depression.
The next food shortage will be worse than the Great Depression.
In this section, we’ll discuss what it means to have a food shortage and why one is looming on the horizon in America and around the world. We’ll also talk about other countries that have experienced similar shortages, and what they did to respond to them.
Why food shortages are inevitable.
- The corporate greed that’s been driving food prices up for decades is still at play. The world’s largest food manufacturers and distributors have been using their power to monopolize the market and drive up prices, which has led to greater profits for them. Even though these corporations have a history of price manipulation, they continue to be allowed to raise their prices as high as they want—a behavior that exacerbates the already-growing problem of global food shortages.
- Bad policy decisions are also contributing to this crisis. For example, many developing countries subsidize their farmers by paying them more than what it costs them to grow crops like corn or wheat. This incentivizes farmers not just in those countries but also across the globe from planting these crops because they can sell them at lower prices without significantly cutting into their profit margins (which would happen if they had to compete directly against subsidized products). As a result, less corn and wheat will be planted than there should be if everyone was operating under fair conditions; this depletes global supplies even further while making it harder for farmers who do get paid fairly—like those growing other types of produce like fruits or vegetables—to compete against cheaper imports from places like Mexico or China whose agricultural policies encourage overproduction (and overconsumption) instead.
- International tensions are also contributing factors here: We’ve seen how Russia’s conflict with Ukraine caused oil prices around the world start climbing again after being relatively low during most of 2015 thanks largely due international sanctions imposed on both sides following Russia’s military intervention into Crimea earlier this year;
1. Rapid inflation is causing major problems with the food supply chain and could cause shortages soon.
Inflation is a problem because it makes it more expensive for food producers to do business. As prices rise, the cost of production rises as well, which means that farmers and providers will have to increase their prices in order to stay in business. When consumers see this happening, they’ll likely wait until there’s a sale before buying food items—but then they’ll have trouble affording them once these sales end. This cycle will continue until either inflation stops or people stop buying groceries altogether because they’re too expensive.
This means that we could soon face shortages in our nation’s supermarkets if inflation continues at its current rate: both consumers and producers will be unable to afford high-quality produce without making sacrifices elsewhere (or simply going without).
2. GMOs have killed off the REAL honey bee population.
As you may know, the honey bee population has been dying off at an alarming rate. In fact, it’s estimated that up to 40 percent of their population will have disappeared by 2020, which means you’ll need to start getting used to all-honey bear jams and honey from your neighbor’s backyard lemon tree. The reason why this is happening? GMOs are killing off the bees—and without them, we won’t be able to grow our own food.
It takes about 1.6 million flowers to make one pound of honey—but if there aren’t enough bees pollinating those flowers, then that supply will dry up quickly. And since many crops rely on pollination from insects such as flies or mosquitoes (yes!), they’re also at risk of disappearing soon too!
3. Severe drought is threatening crops across the globe.
The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that over 795 million people in the world are undernourished. That number is rising, especially in regions where drought has damaged crops.
In the United States, we are not immune to drought either—especially with climate change on the rise. In fact, scientists warn that America could soon face its worst drought in 1,000 years as a result of global warming.
The effects of severe droughts can include:
- Reduced crop production
- Rising food prices
- Hunger and famine
This can cause food shortages across the nation or even worldwide–potentially causing riots around the globe demanding better access to food supplies
4. Pollution continues to contaminate our groundwater and soil, harming crop production and livestock health.
- Pollution continues to contaminate our groundwater and soil, harming crop production and livestock health.
The US is experiencing an unprecedented increase in pollution, which is bad news for farmers and ranchers who rely on natural resources for their livelihoods. While we’re seeing some progress on this front as more states pass tougher anti-pollution laws, there’s still a long way to go before we can say that our water and land are safe again.
The American food supply is at risk because of corporate greed, bad policy and international tensions
The American food supply is at risk because of corporate greed, bad policy and international tensions. There have been other times in history when food shortages were due to natural disasters like drought or flooding, but now we’re facing an entirely different kind of threat. The current crisis can be traced back to the 1980s, when fast food companies began aggressively marketing unhealthy processed foods that are high in calories yet low in nutritional value. This has led to an obesity epidemic that has grown since then and now affects over two-thirds of all adults living in America today.
The issue with our current system is that it benefits large corporations rather than small farmers—and they’re not going out of their way to help those farmers who grow healthier foods either! Large grocery companies make much more money by selling prepared meals than they do by selling fruits and vegetables (which cost more). So this means that instead of spending time trying new ingredients or cooking recipes from scratch at home with real ingredients–like my friend Maria does every day–people opt for processed options like frozen dinners instead (or even worse: takeout).
Conclusion
The next food shortage is coming, but there are ways to prepare. First of all, if you’re not growing your own food right now – start! Start growing some greens in your backyard or even in containers on your patio. Second, get to know your local farmers so that when the time comes for them to sell off their excess stock (because prices have gone up), you’ll be one of the first people they call. Thirdly – look at alternative sources of protein such as insects (which are actually great for our bodies), meat from local farms or even fish from aquaculture ponds nearby where there might not be enough fish left in our oceans anymore due to overfishing practices by large companies like SeaWorld who operate these massive ships that haul thousands upon thousands pounds worth of seafood daily out at sea without any regard whatsoever towards how much pollution they’re creating along with toxic chemicals being dumped into ocean waters which leaves marine life dying off fast before our very eyes.”
