Food Business News - January 31, 2012 - 7

Editorial

EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-chief Morton I. Sosland Executive editor, markets Neil N. Sosland Editor L. Joshua Sosland Executive editor Keith Nunes Senior editor, markets Jay S. Sjerven Managing editor Eric J. Schroeder Associate editor Jeff Gelski Assistant editor Ron Sterk Internet editors Allison Gibeson Erica Shaffer Graphic designer, market graphics, data Christina Sullivan

MORTON SOSLAND

editor@sosland.com

Climate change worries may have positive effect

PUBLISHING STAFF Chairman Charles S. Sosland Vice-chairman L. Joshua Sosland President and publisher Mark Sabo Associate publisher David DePaul G. Michael Gude Bruce Webster Vice-president, chief ﬁnancial ofﬁcer Melanie Hepperly Audience development director Don Keating Advertising manager Nora Wages Director of design services Sadowna Conarroe Circulation manager Judith Arnone Digital systems analyst Marj Potts Manager of advertising design Becky White Director of e-Business Jon Hall Director of on-line advertising and promotions Carrie Fluegge Promotions manager Taré Torres WE’RE EAGER TO RECEIVE YOUR FEEDBACK: E-mail editor@sosland.com or write to us at Food Business News, 4800 Main Street, Suite 100, Kansas City, Mo, 64112

voiding the acrimony surrounding the make it adaptable to many different types of debate on global climate change and weather, with “adaptability helping the plant what should be done to avoid that type accommodate to climate change.” If this works of calamity does not mean the food industry with mustard, the application of this discovery should brush aside the huge part that Nature to other plants will be investigated in an examplays in the business. Not only do weather vari- ple of genetic engineering that would be hard, ations account for a significant share of the vol- if not impossible, to oppose the way such proatility driving swings in major ingredient costs, grams are often challenged. these forces have nearly an equally significant At the other extreme are plans proposed role in influencing consumer shopping as well in countries prone to flooding where farmers as food preferences. Hardly anything about have been shown how to join in establishing understanding weather has advanced enough community farms that grow rice and even to diminish its importance to the well-being of fish in areas with floating gardens. At the the food business. This reality tends to bring same time, developing countries are taking climate change full circle in its potential impact steps to spur well digging, to build dams for on how the food industry evolves because current global concerns Even without embracing the calamities forecast by those have prompted a rush of research to find answers about ismost focused on what may happen to climate, the sues that have evaded solutions for all of history. emphasis is on helping poorer nations cope with Considerable study has been devoted to the two most basic meeting food needs, which are expanding in response to dangers faced by crops from climate change — drought and population and economic growth. flooding. These efforts have been spurred by dire forecasts of how climate change will reduce global outturns. Predictions are being made storing water in reservoirs and to establish that yields of wheat, rice and corn could be re- water movement links between areas that duced by as much as 12% to 13% by likely shifts have surplus water and those that need irrigain weather. It takes no more than the searing tion to raise sufficient food. While the ignition for many of these efforts experience of the past several years, when global outturns varied by much less than those in both developed and developing countries percentages to cause record-setting price ad- may be concern about climate change, the lastvances, to understand the stepped-up pace of ing effect might simply be encouraging good research. As wrong as such prognostications agricultural practices. Instead of the G20 namight be about the effect of climate change tions fulfilling their promise to provide billions on crop yields, just reading about such possi- of dollars of aid to help food-deficit countries bilities has been enough to prompt a sharp in- bolster their production, it seems that their crease in funding to find ways of mitigating this focus has suddenly shifted to achieving the same goals in reaction to concerns over global impact, no matter how questionable. In research partly funded by the National climate change. Even without embracing the Science Foundation, advances have been made calamities forecast by those most focused on by scientists seeking to understand how plant what may happen to climate, the emphasis is genetics affect adaptations to weather. Prelimi- on helping poorer nations cope with meeting nary work has been focused on the mustard food needs, which are expanding in response to plant across a wide range of environments, population and economic growth. Hardly any mainly in its native habitat of Europe. That of the research is providing climate-specific research has already identified a specific set answers. If the result is the widespread adopof genes that control the plant’s well-being in tion of modern agricultural practices, the worsharply different weather. This discovery has ries about climate change may end up having a led to the possibility that these climate-related more positive impact on food production than genes may be incorporated into the plant to anyone has thus far imagined. FBN

January 31, 2012

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Food Business News - January 31, 2012

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