Comments on: Why food is becoming more expensive http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/ Strong opinions weakly held Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:37:05 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Stan Taylor http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2627 Stan Taylor Mon, 05 May 2008 17:13:28 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2627 <p>Bryan,</p> <p>I call BS on your casual suggestion of a relationship between Morgellon's syndrome and GM crops.</p> <p>It's not even known yet that the symptoms that are attributed to Morgellon's actually constitute a single cohesive illness. At this point, casually suggesting it's caused by GM crops is pure fear-mongering and tinfoil hat territory.</p> Bryan,

I call BS on your casual suggestion of a relationship between Morgellon’s syndrome and GM crops.

It’s not even known yet that the symptoms that are attributed to Morgellon’s actually constitute a single cohesive illness. At this point, casually suggesting it’s caused by GM crops is pure fear-mongering and tinfoil hat territory.

]]> By: bryan http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2625 bryan Mon, 05 May 2008 03:15:48 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2625 <p>-) The world can only sustain so many people; even with industrial farming, there is an upper limit. We can either choose to exist below this limit (birth control) or we can have the limit imposed upon us (war/famine).</p> <p>-) GM crops may not be they're all cracked up to be. Google "Morgellon’s Disease" for more.</p> -) The world can only sustain so many people; even with industrial farming, there is an upper limit. We can either choose to exist below this limit (birth control) or we can have the limit imposed upon us (war/famine).

-) GM crops may not be they’re all cracked up to be. Google “Morgellon’s Disease” for more.

]]> By: Bob Haugen http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2623 Bob Haugen Sun, 04 May 2008 13:42:14 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2623 <p>One problem with the argument that current industrial agriculture is required to feed the world is that it is very petroleum-intensive (machinery, fertilizer and chemicals), and the petrol gets scarcer and more expensive all the time.</p> <p>Same goes for Borlaug's methods.</p> One problem with the argument that current industrial agriculture is required to feed the world is that it is very petroleum-intensive (machinery, fertilizer and chemicals), and the petrol gets scarcer and more expensive all the time.

Same goes for Borlaug’s methods.

]]> By: Nathanael Holt http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2622 Nathanael Holt Sun, 04 May 2008 11:10:11 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2622 <p>I emotionally tend towards the organic/smaller scale farming side, while my head sees the necessity of large scale agriculture. Similarly, I understand the argument for higher fuel taxes to curb emissions, while I desire lower petrol prices to keep my household budget from meltdown (rural dweller!). While it would be useful to see the organic movement face this dilemma, I fear heels will be dug in and, at least over here in the UK, fundamentalists will drive the movement to the point of a split, leaving the realists engaging with large scale concerns and the Fundi's exhorting the back-to-basics notion of self-sufficiency.</p> <p>But then my large-scale neighbour's farm is a barren monoculture, with minimal wildlife, that feels desolate and uncomfortable, while my family-run small scale neighbours have farms (all sheep around us) that ooze charm and variety, while surviving only through subsidy and a cultural resistance to any other option. Like you, I would rather buy organic local produce, but I doubt that the system that provides that food for me, could provide it also to the worlds poor.</p> I emotionally tend towards the organic/smaller scale farming side, while my head sees the necessity of large scale agriculture. Similarly, I understand the argument for higher fuel taxes to curb emissions, while I desire lower petrol prices to keep my household budget from meltdown (rural dweller!). While it would be useful to see the organic movement face this dilemma, I fear heels will be dug in and, at least over here in the UK, fundamentalists will drive the movement to the point of a split, leaving the realists engaging with large scale concerns and the Fundi’s exhorting the back-to-basics notion of self-sufficiency.

But then my large-scale neighbour’s farm is a barren monoculture, with minimal wildlife, that feels desolate and uncomfortable, while my family-run small scale neighbours have farms (all sheep around us) that ooze charm and variety, while surviving only through subsidy and a cultural resistance to any other option. Like you, I would rather buy organic local produce, but I doubt that the system that provides that food for me, could provide it also to the worlds poor.

]]> By: Thomas Brownback http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2621 Thomas Brownback Sat, 03 May 2008 20:56:57 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2621 <p>(Wow, looks like I did something horribly wrong with my markdown, greatest apologies).</p> (Wow, looks like I did something horribly wrong with my markdown, greatest apologies).

]]> By: Thomas Brownback http://rc3.org/2008/05/03/why-food-is-becoming-more-expensive/comment-page-1/#comment-2620 Thomas Brownback Sat, 03 May 2008 20:54:04 +0000 http://rc3.org/?p=8220#comment-2620 <p>I've chimed in on this topic [before](http://rc3.org/2008/02/23/is-local-food-production-overrated/#comment-2414 "my previous rantings"), so I'll just make one small aside.</p> <p>Norman Borlaug has personally been responsible for most of the developments in increasing agricultural yields in the past several decades, especially in in Mexico, China and India (three areas that have seen radical economic improvements across the same decades, not sure if work has been done on establishing a correlation there or not).</p> <p>It's been said that "Dr. Borlaug has saved more lives than any other person who has ever lived, and likely has saved more lives in the Islamic world than any other human being in history."</p> <p>Here's a neat chart from [his wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug "Norman Borlaug's Wikipedia Page"): ![Norman's Life Work](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/30/Wheat_yields_in_developing_countries%2C_1951-2004.png "Wheat Yields in Developing Countries")</p> I’ve chimed in on this topic [before](http://rc3.org/2008/02/23/is-local-food-production-overrated/#comment-2414 “my previous rantings”), so I’ll just make one small aside.

Norman Borlaug has personally been responsible for most of the developments in increasing agricultural yields in the past several decades, especially in in Mexico, China and India (three areas that have seen radical economic improvements across the same decades, not sure if work has been done on establishing a correlation there or not).

It’s been said that “Dr. Borlaug has saved more lives than any other person who has ever lived, and likely has saved more lives in the Islamic world than any other human being in history.”

Here’s a neat chart from [his wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug “Norman Borlaug’s Wikipedia Page”): ![Norman's Life Work](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/30/Wheat_yields_in_developing_countries%2C_1951-2004.png “Wheat Yields in Developing Countries”)

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