Changes In The Earth's Climate Are Making Food Production More Costly - CleanTechnica

A recent study led by Maximillian Kotz at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center highlights how climate change-driven extreme weather events are significantly increasing food production costs globally, with broad political and social implications. The research documents sharp price spikes linked to climate extremes, such as an 80% rise in vegetable prices in Arizona and California due to 2022 heat and drought, a 50% increase in olive oil prices in Spain and Italy following droughts, and dramatic price surges in cocoa and coffee from West Africa. These findings build on earlier work connecting abnormal heat to overall inflation, suggesting that as climate change intensifies, consumer food prices and inflation will continue to rise worldwide. The study emphasizes that these food price increases have cascading consequences beyond economics, affecting nutrition, social stability, and political order. For example, past climate-related food price shocks have contributed to unrest, such as the Arab Spring protests linked to a wheat price spike after Russian wildfires in 2010. Experts warn that austerity measures