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Diversity of Crops in Decline

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Over the past 50 years the situation of the crops worldwide has changed. Now there is less variety of plants cultivated for food.

A loss of diversity means more people are dependent on key crops, leaving them more exposed to harvest failures. It is the so called "globalised diet": wheat, rice, potatoes and sugar are now the major crops. Soybeans are a relatively new food, but three quarters of nations int he world consume it. Amid the crops recording a decline in recent decades there are millets, rye, yams, sweet potatoes and cassava.

The study, published on the journal PNAS by an international team of scientists also found that the global diet could accelerate the rise in non-communicable diseases - such as diabetes and heart disease - which are becoming an increasing problem worldwide. Agriculture is becoming more vulnerable to major threats like drought, insect pests and diseases, which are likely to become worse in many parts of the world as a result of climate change. As the pressure increases on our global food system, so does our dependence on the global crops and production system that feeds us. Failure is not an option.

Photo: ENN

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Date: 5 March 2014
Credits Publisher: Spiritual News

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