11 October 2023
Is Rice Production Becoming a Wicked Problem?
Abstract
There has been a recent chorus of concerns about global warming’s impacts. While the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has projected the need to increase rice production by 5 million tonnes per year to meet growing demand up to 2050, it is hampered by climate-related disruptions, from short-term droughts and floods to longer-term yield and production declines. Adding to these, growing more rice will inevitably lead to more methane and nitrous oxide emissions, which contribute significantly to greenhouse gase (GHGs) emissions to which climate change has been attributed. This presents a “wicked problem” of meeting both food security requirements as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions. What is the scientific evidence that supports the concerns about insufficient growth in rice production to feed the demand from a growing population of rice eaters, and how can the apparently contrasting goals of producing more rice and reducing GHGs be reconciled?
Abstract
There has been a recent chorus of concerns about global warming’s impacts. While the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has projected the need to increase rice production by 5 million tonnes per year to meet growing demand up to 2050, it is hampered by climate-related disruptions, from short-term droughts and floods to longer-term yield and production declines. Adding to these, growing more rice will inevitably lead to more methane and nitrous oxide emissions, which contribute significantly to greenhouse gase (GHGs) emissions to which climate change has been attributed. This presents a “wicked problem” of meeting both food security requirements as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions. What is the scientific evidence that supports the concerns about insufficient growth in rice production to feed the demand from a growing population of rice eaters, and how can the apparently contrasting goals of producing more rice and reducing GHGs be reconciled?
