Food and Wine reported this week on a new study by Harvard’s School of Public Health which looked at the nutritional content of crops eaten around the world under higher concentrations of carbon dioxide, which is increasing in the atmosphere. The study showed that as carbon dioxide continues to increase, the nutritional content of many crops will lessen, to the point that some 150 million people around the world could suffer protein deficiencies by 2050, and iron supplies could plummet in some regions. According to the report, “countries in Asia and Africa face the highest risk, the researchers say, because there, people’s diets rely heavily on wheat and rice, two foods that already lack in protein.” New varieties with greater nutritional value may be able to make up some of the deficit, they hope. You can read more here.
