I think the recent era has done much to show us just how delicately balanced everything is. Many if not most if not all of the various processes at work in the world have been in a state of equilibrium for some time. Throw off the balance, and everything comes crashing down.
Look at the close relation between fuel and food. Demand for petroleum remained balanced for a long time, but now increased demand from countries like India and China has shattered that balance. Toss in a few nasty situations in world politics, and you have oil prices shooting through the roof. Unfortunately, that affects not only transportation but a huge number of different industries including food production.
The result? Higher food prices.
Naturally, people deal with high fuel prices by looking for alternative fuels. Conveniently, this fits right in with the environment agenda, which would also like to see sulfur and carbon-producing fossil fuels relegated to the "extinct technology" file. One of the most popular alternatives is biodiesel, which looks incredibly good on paper. However, as a crop-based product, its production is only possible if there is also a proportional decrease in food crop production.
The result? Higher food prices.
Now Japan is facing something even more ironic. Not so long ago the government started a health-related hate campaign against milk. All kinds of studies were publicized showing how evil milk really is and discouraging people from drinking it. The campaign was given a lot of media coverage, and the milk-bashing crusade consequently got lots of attention.
The result? People stopped drinking milk.
Not surprisingly, a LOT of dairy farmers have been driven out of business. However, milk demand has remained surprisingly constant as a result of existing commercial contracts. That means a much more limited milk supply is going to produce more or less the same amount of drinkable milk as before. The same is true of cheese. So where is the falling supply being felt?
Answer: butter.
There is no butter to be found in ANY supermarkets anywhere. You can get it at the gift shops of ranches, but in general stores around the country there is simply NO butter. We're told that it may be weeks before shipments arrive. Households aren't really affected so much, since margarine is a realistic option, but bakeries are facing a crisis. They're being told they might have to wait over a month to get any butter at all.
I guess, for the time being, this is margarine country. I wonder if it'll really affect the bread that much.
Endangered species?
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