Wheat is largely cultivated worldwide and represents a staple source of food globally. However, climate change is having an impact on the production of wheat as well as on its price.
A study recently published by Receipt’s researcher Dr Karin van der Wiel, together with other peers, shows that even if the global temperature stays below 2°C of warming, wheat prices are likely to rise. Researchers looked into the impacts of climate mean conditions and extreme events on wheat yields, price and global supply-demand chain. One of the main predictions of their modelling ensemble shows that yield will increase in high latitude regions, such as the North of Europe, whilst dropping in lower latitude areas, such as the Mediterranean countries.
One of the main consequences of these predictions is that this would reduce the income of farmers from wheat importing countries and exacerbate inequalities. The study concludes that trade liberalisation has to be accompanied by protection policies in order to achieve food security.
The findings can be found on the scientific journal OneEarth.
Published on : 09 September 2022