You're Going To Miss These Things In The Future
Nov 29, 2013 19:02
Imagine a future without things like chocolate, sardines and bacon. Sounds horrible, but it's definitely possible.
You might want to consider stocking up on these following items, because there's a high chance it'll be difficult to get your hands on them within the next few decades.
The fact of the matter is chocolate will just be too expensive to produce en masse. Chocolate can only be grown in latitudes within 10 degrees of the
equator, which happens to be areas where the most unstable countries on
the planet are located.
While the majority of the world's cocoa supply comes from West Africa, farming cocoa beans isn't financially lucrative for your average West African farmer. Not only is it time-consuming (each new crop takes five years to grow), it has to be done by hand under excruciating heat. These farmers only end up earning about eighty cents for a day of labour.
Fair-trade laws are slowly being enforced, meaning that the price of labor is going to go up. While this should be a good thing, it ultimately puts farmers at an even greater loss since companies will have to spike prices, meaning that the average consumer won't be able to afford their wares.
Sardine populations have a tendency to fluctuate with water temperature, and these tiny fish have been reproducing less ever since Pacific waters cooled back in the 1990s. At this rate, it could be decades before the water warms up enough to welcome back our salty friends of the sea.
Heavy fishing is also a major problem, and unless they start enforcing a limit on catches, it won't be enough to sustain the dwindling stock.
Mexico's blue agave yield (the plant tequila comes from) isn't doing so well. Farmers were turning their backs on these crops and opting to grow corn since it's far more lucrative. That usually involves burning down whatever is left of the agave harvest.
While some major producers have been carefully storing away tequila for the upcoming shortage, that also means that only the wealthy will be able to afford them. And even if the agave makes a comeback, itt takes about 12 years for the plant to be able to actually produce the fructose necessary to make tequila.
Helium isn't just balloons, it's actually a highly necessary commodity in the modern world that used in everything from MRI magnets to fiber optics and even LCD screens.
The US government has a national helium reserve (which represents half the Earth's helium stocks) but Congress passed an act in 1996 that requires this reserve to be sold off by 2015 for cheap.
Once that eventually runs out, the only other option is to recover helium from the air, a process which will increase the cost to about 10,000 times what it does today.
There may be one million wine producers worldwide putting out about 2.8 billion cases a year, but it's still not enough to fill the ever-increasing demand.
In 2012, production fell by over five percent, which is the lowest it's been since the 1960s. That same year, wine production in Europe (which produces about half of the world's supply) dropped a staggering 10 percent. Most of the industry growth today is due to "boutique operators," which aren't going to be enough to drive any significant supply.
It's not looking good for goat cheese. Back in 2010, the UK saw a major outbreak of Q fever disease. As a result, over 50,000 pregnant goats and sheep were removed from breeding, while some farmers decided to halt breeding altogether.
But the demand continues to skyrocket (particularly during the holidays), and places like China are only starting to acquire a taste for the particularly tangy treat. Retailers would either need to pay more for goat products or risk being left short. One or the other will give shortly—it'll either be price or availability.
According to Britain's National Pig Association (NPA), a world-wide shortage of bacon and other pork products "is now unavoidable." The NPA largely attributed the shortage to the rising cost of food, a cost which can in turn be attributed to the previous year's weak corn and soybean harvests.
The US Department of Agriculture has also a similar report which accurately predicted that hog farmers would cut production in order to minimize their losses. And prices are certainly going to reflect the diminishing stock.
You might want to consider stocking up on these following items, because there's a high chance it'll be difficult to get your hands on them within the next few decades.
Chocolate
The fact of the matter is chocolate will just be too expensive to produce en masse. Chocolate can only be grown in latitudes within 10 degrees of the
equator, which happens to be areas where the most unstable countries on
the planet are located. While the majority of the world's cocoa supply comes from West Africa, farming cocoa beans isn't financially lucrative for your average West African farmer. Not only is it time-consuming (each new crop takes five years to grow), it has to be done by hand under excruciating heat. These farmers only end up earning about eighty cents for a day of labour.
Fair-trade laws are slowly being enforced, meaning that the price of labor is going to go up. While this should be a good thing, it ultimately puts farmers at an even greater loss since companies will have to spike prices, meaning that the average consumer won't be able to afford their wares.
Sardines
Sardine populations have a tendency to fluctuate with water temperature, and these tiny fish have been reproducing less ever since Pacific waters cooled back in the 1990s. At this rate, it could be decades before the water warms up enough to welcome back our salty friends of the sea.Heavy fishing is also a major problem, and unless they start enforcing a limit on catches, it won't be enough to sustain the dwindling stock.
Tequila
Mexico's blue agave yield (the plant tequila comes from) isn't doing so well. Farmers were turning their backs on these crops and opting to grow corn since it's far more lucrative. That usually involves burning down whatever is left of the agave harvest. While some major producers have been carefully storing away tequila for the upcoming shortage, that also means that only the wealthy will be able to afford them. And even if the agave makes a comeback, itt takes about 12 years for the plant to be able to actually produce the fructose necessary to make tequila.
Helium
Helium isn't just balloons, it's actually a highly necessary commodity in the modern world that used in everything from MRI magnets to fiber optics and even LCD screens. The US government has a national helium reserve (which represents half the Earth's helium stocks) but Congress passed an act in 1996 that requires this reserve to be sold off by 2015 for cheap.
Once that eventually runs out, the only other option is to recover helium from the air, a process which will increase the cost to about 10,000 times what it does today.
Wine
There may be one million wine producers worldwide putting out about 2.8 billion cases a year, but it's still not enough to fill the ever-increasing demand. In 2012, production fell by over five percent, which is the lowest it's been since the 1960s. That same year, wine production in Europe (which produces about half of the world's supply) dropped a staggering 10 percent. Most of the industry growth today is due to "boutique operators," which aren't going to be enough to drive any significant supply.
Goat Cheese
It's not looking good for goat cheese. Back in 2010, the UK saw a major outbreak of Q fever disease. As a result, over 50,000 pregnant goats and sheep were removed from breeding, while some farmers decided to halt breeding altogether. But the demand continues to skyrocket (particularly during the holidays), and places like China are only starting to acquire a taste for the particularly tangy treat. Retailers would either need to pay more for goat products or risk being left short. One or the other will give shortly—it'll either be price or availability.
Bacon
According to Britain's National Pig Association (NPA), a world-wide shortage of bacon and other pork products "is now unavoidable." The NPA largely attributed the shortage to the rising cost of food, a cost which can in turn be attributed to the previous year's weak corn and soybean harvests. The US Department of Agriculture has also a similar report which accurately predicted that hog farmers would cut production in order to minimize their losses. And prices are certainly going to reflect the diminishing stock.
