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New research shows that world governments subsidize harmful farming practices to the tune of $1.8 billion. This means that governments help businesses that clear out forests, rainforests, grasslands and savannah areas to grow food in unsustainable ways.
Yet, reforestation is crucial. See the story below about rising sea levels. Shouldn’t government subsidies be redirected towards sustainable farming pronto??
“In a situation where, as a civilisation, we are dying from climate change and biodiversity loss, we should not be spending money on making the situation worse,” Ariel Brunner, head of policy for BirdLife Europe and Central Asia, told The Guardian. “The biggest threats to our ability to feed ourselves are climate change and environmental collapse. We have enough food. The only scenarios in which we wouldn’t have enough are linked to running out of water, soil erosion and the collapse of ecosystems.”
Indeed, the world does have enough food. The problem is that access is limited for those without wealth and those with wealth waste it. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, industrialized nations annually waste 670 million tons of food. Think about that next time you go shopping. Too many of us buy food that was grown on deforested land just to throw it away.
