Why we need to control the population
But it's all OK, people say. We can keep inviting millions more people in and just build more houses on more land and everything will be rosy. It won't.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-28003435
Britain is running out of land for food and faces a potential shortfall of two million hectares by 2030 according to new research.
The report, from the University of Cambridge, says the growing population plus the use of land for energy crops are contributing to the gap.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-28003435
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renew!!
We currently according to Defra have good food security, should that come under threat I expect the government will take appropriate action to ensure the population does not starve.
Why do we need to be self sufficient in food? What's wrong with just importing it? It seems stupid to use land for farming when it would be far more valuable for housing/leisure/business.
Before anyone asks what would happen if there was a world war or some other event that prevented imports; if that were to happen we'd be in a lot more trouble than worrying about where the next block of butter is coming from. A few weeks of no oil/gas imports would send us back to the stone age.
We can support 50 million, no more.
By 2020 the population will be 70 million if we do not halt net immigration now.
If the pound collapses, (which it will, the trade deficit makes that a certainty) we will not be able to import enough food to feed everyone and people will starve.
You're predicting a future in which the UK can no longer afford basic imports? Do you have any idea how dependent this country is on foreign trade and what would happen if that prediction was true? Seriously, we might as well just push the red button now and end it all if we're going to give in to paranoia and fear.
These problems don't just suddenly occur, they happen over many decades. I'm certain that the government could take the steps necessary to deal with them if they did come up. A worse case scenario is that we end all cattle farming and just grow crops; I don't have the figures to hand but i'm sure that would easily feed everyone.
Well, since you brought it up....hubba hubba.
:kitty:
If we end up starving then Defra in the UK would have a lot of questions to answer as to food security, since they do reports on UK food security to 2050. Also answering questions would be the EU since we also have policies with the EU on EU food security.
The UK is one of the wealthiest nations on earth, about a third of our agricultural land is set aside let alone all the land that could be used that is currently gardens, parks, undevloped, etc; and we have a diet which contains a lot of meat which is far less efficient than plants as far as food production. For us to end up starving to death would take a global disaster, or a level of incompetence in our government's and the EU's food security policies to beggar belief.
Those are the facts.
When you have large net immigration, you drive up imports and drive down productivity and create huge trade deficits.
This is what has been happening and the only way to balance the books is to sell off assets, that is why all the utility companies are now in foreign hands.
When you run out of assets to sell to balance the books (and we have chomped our way through over 50% of UK business now) then the currency collapses as nobody will want to accept UK pounds as payment for goods.
Its not fiction, it will definitely happen at some point.
But it is desirable to be as self sufficient in food as practical. We learnt that during the second world war. Now we are being told we need to secure our energy needs because of political instability in those parts of the world that produce most of the world's energy.
The simple fact is when times gets tough no one has to sell us food, or energy or anything else and this island is too small to be self sufficient in those things for the level of our current population. Indeed in the 70's the ecology party recognised this and campaigned for a sustainable population of then 35 million approximately. Their current incarnation, the Green Party, now campaign for increased immigration - what a turnaround
Its funny how so much is made of global warning and the threat to the world but those who are supposedly responsible for it, mankind, are allowed to keep increasing their numbers and using the earth's resources without limit. I think priorities are wrong on this ......
If we're self-sufficient, money stays in the economy.
If we import food, money leaves the economy, adding to our current account deficit.
Yes, let's go back to the Middle Ages and just eat teeth-rotting diabetes-inducing crops.
Because the global population is booming and competition is growing for food resources. Countries like China are importing vast amounts and their buying power trumps ours. Of course, we could carry on concreting over our farmland to accommodate continuing streams of immigrants and hope we may be able to pick up some crumbs to eat abroad. I would prefer us to have a sustainable plan.
Germany is expecting a large population decline. Most of Europe is expecting to remain around similar levels.
It's a big place is Germany. And we're in a much better position to buy from them than the Chinese (who incidentally are expecting a massive decline).
Why would be in a better position than the Chinese - the second biggest economy in the world. They have huge buying power. They are already buying all the UK's remaining assets up.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=46647#.U6rWRBbobx4
If your reasoning is correct, what are the immediate steps that need to be taken in order to begin rectifying the problem?
And how long do you think it will be before the Pound collapses?
Shortly after America no longer has the petro-dollar as the world default currency, and the dollar collapses.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningzone/clips/using-maths-to-calculate-the-most-efficient-use-of-land-to-produce-food/13630.html
The only food that should be imported is food that can not be grown here. Think of all energy and pollution involved in shipping food around the world.
The other point I would make is as the rest of the word starts to eat a more western diet these foods will become more and more expensive.
Besides I am fed up of seeing horrible modern housing estates replace fields and countryside.
1. We should be self sufficient in case we are no longer able to import food.
For us to get to a situation where we are unable to import food would require some truly apocalyptic set of circumstances. Why should we base current land/farming policy on a worst case scenario, scare story? It's like saying we should all build shelters in the back garden in case of nuclear war.
2. Food will become expensive in the future due to rising population so it makes sense for us to have our own farming capacity.
There's a good argument to be made that food prices will rise as a larger, wealthier global population demands a richer diet. However it's also possible that technological advancements could vastly increase our farming capacity and reduce food prices. That was the reality of the 20th century. Either way it's not going to happen overnight and, again, it would make more sense to plan for it once it's occurring rather than preparing for the worst now.
3. Importing food impacts our balance of payments (ie we have to send money out of the country).
I don't know how to answer this without giving everyone a beginners lecture in the costs and benefits of international trade. It's like asking why people go to work rather than spending their time growing their own food. Basically when land value is high it's more efficient for a country to use it's resources for non food production .
To give an example - say you have 10 acres of land that could grow £10,000 worth of food or which could be used for manufacturing and generate £50,000 of profit. If you spend £10,000 on importing the food you are still £40,000 better off overall. And if more than £10,000 of the manufactured goods are sold to other countries then your balance of payments improves as well.