Food rationing? In the US? WTF?

[conuly]

What is this, what is going on here, somebody explain this to me? (Explain it to me by telling me the appropriate panic index for RIGHT FUCKING NOW, okay? I've had a long day, I don't need it to be any longer.)

Comments

[conuly]

Biofuels are the devil. Got it. But how much should I be panicking right now?

[threeoranges.livejournal.com]

Don't panic right now: from that article, it looks like only rice is affected. Should the lack of availability extend to bread, pasta and potatoes as well, THEN panic.

As I see it, we spoilt Westerners have had too much choice for too long. Eventually we're going to have to accept a cut-back in our choice so that the world as a whole can finally have "enough". I for one am not going to like it when I can't get hold of exactly what I want (be it stringbeans, chocolate or a special kind of breakfast cereal), but if it means less starvation in the other parts of the world then OK, I can live with it.

Of course, Sod's Law being what it is, could be the limiting of our consumption WON'T help the rest of the world. Could be the rich have messed things up so much for their own selfish ends that practically everyone's screwed, but I'll wait and see before I start panicking.

[velvetchamber.livejournal.com]

Yes and no. Biofuels from edible parts of plants are not a good way to go. However, if fermentation of cellulose could be made more efficient (I gather that pentose fermentation is one of the great hurdles) that would yield viable biofuel. That would mean that the agricultural "leftovers" such as corn husk and stalks, could be used in biofuel production. It would be bad for the fungi though...

[conuly]

But the fungi help the plants. It's the ciiiiiiiircle of liiiiiiiiiiife, right? No fungi - less plants? I can't help the feeling that that plan would also turn around and bite us in the ass.

[velvetchamber.livejournal.com]

Well, there are fungi and fungi. Some fungi kill plants, other fungi kill animals, yet other fungi kill other fungi, then there are some fungi that live in symbiosis with plants (and a whole bunch of fungi that do something entirely different, like hang out in symbiosis with algae or cyanobacteria and form lichens).

When I say not so good for the fungi, I mean that there will be less corn husk to go around for them, but that's just a drop in the ocean. It's bad for individual fungi, it's not even bad for individual species of fungi. Also, these fungi are of the kind that degrade dead (plant) material, and as long as something's dying, there are under almost all circumstances plenty of bidders to munch on the dead thing, fast or slow.

So, in essence, there is a very limited possibility that cellulose fermentation is going to be a problem.

[velvetchamber.livejournal.com]

Not to mention, paper that's not feasible to be recycled could just as easily be used for cellulose fermentation, not in the same vats as the agricultural leftovers, due to additives to the paper, but it's none the less a possibility.