Trying to Solve the Global Warming Problem Could Have Effects on the Hunger Problem

by Monica Joshi

The Kyoto Protocol, signed and ratified by 192 countries, had one goal: a global agreement to fight climate change. Many of the nations and even the one regional economic integration organization have begun to prepare and implement proactive plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Researchers have found that there might be another critical factor that needs to be considered before we make leaps to mitigate the effects of climate change.

A new study has found for the first time that efforts to keep global temperatures in check might likely lead to more people going hungry due to their effects on food production. However, researchers have stated in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology that this risk doesn't negate the need for mitigation, but rather emphasizes the importance of comprehensive policies that are more well-rounded and consider other aspects of global warming.

Some previous studies have shown that climate change may affect how much food farms can produce, for example. While curbing the greenhouse gas emissions that lead to climate change can help to maintain the yields of existing crops, there might be indirect ways in which cutting emissions could put more people at risk of suffering from hunger. Some grasses and other vegetation, for instance, that are used for biofuels require agricultural land that may otherwise be used for food production. In other words, increased biofuel consumption could negatively affect the food supply in those regions.

The researchers, Tomoko Hasegawa and his colleagues, used multiple models to come to the conclusion that there are three major impacts of climate change and mitigation measures, in all, on food consumption and the risk of hunger. They used a global computable general equilibrium model and a crop model to quantify the three impacts on risk of hunger through to 2050, accounting for the mitigation measures taken to meet the emission target that keeps the global average temperature increase to two degrees Celsius.

The impacts are as follows: First, changes in crop yields caused by climate change can cause certain crops to either die out or be destroyed due to change in temperatures. Second, as aforementioned, competition for land between food crops and energy crops can be driven by the increased use of biotechnology. Last, to get involved in these new changes, the high cost of low-emissions technologies (e.g., carbon capture and storage) will be taken on by consumers. These consumers, in turn, will have less money to spend on food.

The researchers found that many more people would be at risk of hunger than if those cuts were not in place. They suggested that governments would have to take certain measures, such as increasing food aid, alongside addressing climate change.