"China's Epic Race to Avoid a Food Crisis'

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China’s 1.4 billion people are building up an appetite that is changing the way the world grows and sells food. The Chinese diet is becoming more like that of the average American, forcing companies to scour the planet for everything from bacon to bananas.

But China’s efforts to buy or lease agricultural land in developing nations show that building farms and ranches abroad won’t be enough. Ballooning populations in Asia, Africa and South America will add another 2 billion people within a generation and they too will need more food.

Chin is buying up poor third world spots to keep itself fed

So how can China produce enough safe food for its growing population if they all start eating like Americans?

The simple answer is it can’t...That was one impetus behind China’s so-called land grab, where it bought or leased land in countries like Mozambique to secure grain supplies.

I wonder if we'll see a scenario like Ukraine in WWII where they would grow food and watch it get hauled away to someone else.

as the populace increases, how hard will it be to keep the food supply? is there still plenty of land, and the will/ability to distribute?


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Inside a gated compound patrolled by armed guards, hulking towers and concrete buildings loom over fields where Silva Muthemba once grew maize and fattened his cattle.

The granaries and surveillance cameras in this corner of southern Mozambique were part of a wave of Chinese investment in overseas farms and agriculture companies a decade ago that sparked accusations of a land-grab as the Asian country tried to secure enough food for its future...But the project has become a lesson in the pitfalls of trying to start big farm projects in poor countries, a story of politics, protests and natural disasters that explains why China's model for agricultural investments abroad is moving more toward buying established brands in developed countries.

“We lost grazing land to the Chinese,” said Muthemba, standing next to his home on the wide plains of Gaza province near the mouth of the Limpopo River. “They said we were going to have jobs in rice cultivation, but we don’t.”

as they become bigger players do they risk becoming the new bullies?

a reply to: ElGoobero

I wonder if we'll see a scenario like Ukraine in WWII where they would grow food and watch it get hauled away to someone else. as the populace increases, how hard will it be to keep the food supply? is there still plenty of land, and the will/ability to distribute?

Good grief..........I hadn't thought about any of this; you're describing an absolute disaster of global proportions.

In reality, I guess we're beginning to come to a better and clearer understanding of what the next world war will be all about............food and resources, but obviously...........food first. The upside of course, to the next world war, is that it will work to reduce the overall population. But obviously at a tragic cost.

Didn't I read somewhere China wants to lease land in Africa to grow crops? I wish they could make that deal! Lots of unused land in Africa.

Good grief. Chinese starting to eat the Western Diet, can't they see we are sick from this kind of diet. They do not allow a lot of American food that contains chemicals in China though, that may make things better, most cereals are not allowed to be imported from America for a couple of reasons.

a reply to: ElGoobero

This will be the straw that breaks the camel's back.

This goes hand in hand with global pollution problems. There are simply too many people and too few resources. This is bigger than just food too, it's everything from oil to paper.

Now, if we as a global population could reduce our wastefulness by 50% than we could buy a lot of time and lessen the blow of this crisis, but I'm afraid our wastefulness is not being addressed appropriately.

By the year 2050 there will be major events that decide the fate of our civilization and these events will center around this issue (resources). People will become desperate (even more so than they are now).

a reply to: angeldoll
Where do you think Mozambique is located?

Puma says he was shocked at the scale of the problem revealed in the results. Many of the countries that rely most heavily on overexploited aquifers also happen to be the world's biggest food producers: the U.S., Mexico, China, India. And the relationship between supply and demand in the global food trade is already tight. "So it's really troubling to look at this, on top of all of the challenges we face for the global food supply," he said.

phys.org - Overuse of water threatens global food supply.

Using data and a couple models some researchers came to a horrifying fact. Ground water reserves are being depleted and are not being replenished fast enough to meet demand. That means the water used to farm crops is slowly being used up in the growing regions which means less crops creating additional stress. The global farming methods needs to be rethought. Waste can be mitigated but it has to be done actively. I know humans are smart enough to solve the problem but needs to start... uh, like ten years ago!

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

More important, we should stop making fuel out of food. It takes a strain the earth even more, if monoculture is utilized.

a reply to: verschickter

Yup, keeps prices high for no good reason. It is a bad fuel too.

Frikken' money lovers. Every last dollar for every last drop. It is already shifting away from oil but still they hold on with a death grip. "Let go man. It's all good. Watch what happens next," is what I would tell them.

We should have enough chemicals lying around that we can use a pre-cursors for biofuels. If not throw a cap on a natural gas flue and use CO2 direct from the source.

Bass ackwards. Why can't we change?! Hope it doesn't lead to all out war. I hope I'm in the correct timeline!

Well its not like china dont have excess meat to eat. Start holding a weekly lottery and your number comes up its off to the soylent green factory. Joke.

a reply to: ElGoobero
This is a none issue.
Lab meat


Cities of the Future May Eat Plants Grown in the Air

originally posted by: yuppa
Well its not like china dont have excess meat to eat. Start holding a weekly lottery and your number comes up its off to the soylent green factory. Joke.

The problem with Chinese cannibalism is that an hour later, you just have to eat someone else.

a reply to: rickymouse

So true, yet I wish they would stop eating endangered marine life.

originally posted by: DBCowboy

originally posted by: yuppa
Well its not like china dont have excess meat to eat. Start holding a weekly lottery and your number comes up its off to the soylent green factory. Joke.

The problem with Chinese cannibalism is that an hour later, you just have to eat someone else.

Yeah ya got a point. And the calories go straight to your hips.

Yes we will be able to feed ourselves with 'stuff' but where will we get the water we need to stay alive?

I remember reading back in the 70/80's that water shortages would probably start WWIII and the situation is a lot worse now than then (think global pop. was about 2B then)

a reply to: johnb



Nano and graphlene

a reply to: seasonal

Vertical Farming Singapore


This is Sky Greens a vertical farm in Singapore. There are several others around. But this will need to be done on a massive basis. VF use less water, have a natural pest control by not being open to the environment, and they can be in any type of environment since it is controlled.

For example, here in Alaska, we have a guy making bean sprouts, herbs, lettuce, etc. in a VF that is organic and hydroponic. He's even in the super markets (it used to be a weekend stand stall). If he can do this in Alaska year round it should be possible anywhere.

a reply to: ElGoobero

a hanful of non-MSM reporters/organizations I follow have speculated that China "building islands" in the South China sea is actually so that China can protect valuable food-bearing areas, for example they could use them to fight off Taiwanese fisherman.

Will be following this story...

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Yep, this is how we will grow some food. It could be how we grow all our food, setting up and getting running is a major cost. But the rewards would be huge.

If China hadn't converted their own country into a massive environmental disaster, they might have better luck at home too.