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adventure_in_gnarnia t1_j3k8hg6 wrote

Reply to comment by Desrac in ‘Holy grail’ wheat gene discovery could feed our overheated world by _m3r1u5_

Our Overeated* world. There’s already food surplus, and most countries are facing obesity problems. In first world countries subsidies artificially inflate crop prices so farmers can make a living.

I hate to be cynical, but at this point I doubt this would be a large scale solution. Farming in the modern world is incredibly efficient. Supply chains and distribution are the problem

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acolyte357 t1_j3mcqnj wrote

Well, if wheat can be grown in more harsh environments then locally sourced food would be more available, right?

That would reduce supply chain and distribution issues.

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adventure_in_gnarnia t1_j3mm836 wrote

Hopefully, but wheat is a very resource and land intensive crop. It is the worlds bread basket, but it often doesn’t make sense to grow when it can be imported at 1/3 of the price from climates that are more ideal growing conditions and benefit from scales of economy. It really does come down to cost, if farmers can’t make money growing it locally, they won’t.

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