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Report
No.250301 |
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MAFF's Study Group Demanding Higher Self-sufficiency in Final Report as World Food Supplies Getting Tighter "Kokusai Shokuryo Mondai Kenkyukai", study group on international food issues, under Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries warns in its final report completed before November 10 that the increased population in developing countries, competition for agricultural products with biomass fuels, and other factors will bring about tight food supplies. In addition, the report indicates that the active commitment to the improvement of food self-sufficiency ratio is required with an emphasis on the domestic agricultural production. According to the report, India and China have the greatest influence on the demand that combined to account for 40% of the world population and doubled their demand for grains in 35 years up to 2005. Moreover, the global increase in demand for biomass fuels would lead to tight supplies of corn, from which the fuels are made, for the next two to three years. Looking at the supply, it mentions that the growth of food production will slow down. In fact, the yield rose by 3% a year in the 1960s, with the number dropping to 2% in the 1970s and to 1.5% from 1980s onward. The reasons indicated by the report include frequent occurrence of abnormal weather conditions. The study group, which was formed in March of 2007 to identify a global environment surrounding foods and their future supply and demand, has had eight meetings to discuss with experts. |
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