A Cargill executive told a crowd at Kansas State University Monday night that climate change is real, and must be addressed head-on to prevent future food shortages. Heartland Health Monitor’s Bryan Thompson has more.
Greg Page co-chaired a group of business leaders who looked at the economic risks under various climate change scenarios. They say farmers in northern states would likely benefit from a longer growing season. But that would be more than offset by lost production in the southern grain belt.
“U.S. production of corn, soybeans, wheat and cotton could decline by 14% by mid-century, and by as much as 42% by late-century," Page says.
But Page says that scenario doesn’t have to come true, if farmers adapt to the changing climate. He says the most effective way to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is by changing the way electricity is generated.