Exceedingly high temperatures are not only a nuisance for the easily perspired, but there are some serious issues facing agriculture around the world.
Significant climate change is affecting farms all over the world, and the scary part is that the potential severity is still unknown. No one is sure which crops are in the most danger, and when the tipping point may come, either.
A study published in Nature Climate Change shows that one of the most important crops in the world could be in the most trouble as the global temperature continues to rise.
According to The Washington Post, multiple studies have been done, compared, and redone, leading researchers from all over to agree on one sentiment: wheat production is in trouble.
In the U.S., one acre of wheat can produce around 40 bushels of wheat. This crop is widely regarded as the single most important product for food consumption and if these temperatures continue to significantly rise, global wheat production will surely suffer.
“The consistent negative impact from increasing temperatures confirmed by three independent methods warrants critical needed investment in climate change adaptation strategies,” read the study. The researchers added that these adaptation strategies are needed to “counteract the adverse effects of rising temperatures on global wheat production, including genetic improvement and management adjustments.”
Despite the climate-related worrying, Reuters reports that in the U.S., after a slow year of wheat sales — the lowest amount of wheat sold since 1971 — the market might actually be heading in a positive direction.
U.S. wheat shipments are peaking right now, right before soybean production and distribution begins in October. Wheat sales this season, which started on June 1, are at the second-highest level over the last five seasons.
Global wheat production and supply are expected to increase compared to last year, but the dark cloud — the one bringing significantly higher temperatures — continues to look on in the distance.