Unprecedented heat and drought threaten world’s wheat supply: study
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New York (The Hindu News): The likelihood of extreme temperatures has increased significantly in wheat growing regions of the US and China, which could affect crop yields. This information has been revealed in a study. According to information published in the journal NPJ Climate & Atmospheric Science, a heat wave that used to occur once every 100 years is now more likely to occur once every six years in the Midwestern US and once every 16 years in northeastern China.
The US and China are considered global breadbaskets – regions that produce much of the grain the world needs. If these crops were to fail together or at the same time as other staple crops, it could have a serious impact on the price and availability of food around the world.
The study is about a situation for which people need to prepare, even if such a situation has not yet arisen.
The historical record no longer tells us what to expect for the future, said Erin Coughlan de Perez, associate professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.
Coughlan de Perez said, we are living in a changed climate and people are ignoring the conditions arising from climate change.
According to the most recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the average global temperature over the past decade was 1.1°C higher than between 1850 and 1900.
For the study, Coughlan de Perez and his team gathered a large set of weather forecasts from the past 40 years.
They used this set to generate thousands of possible variations in temperature and precipitation.
Winter wheat crops grow in the fall and are harvested the following summer. High temperatures in the spring, when the wheat plant is flowering, can affect wheat growth.
Plants become affected by heat at temperatures above 27.8 °C. Important enzymes in wheat begin to break down at temperatures above 32.8 °C.
Coughlan de Perez said the record heat and record drought are linked.
The combination of these two hazards can seriously affect the wheat crop.
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