Feeding the world !

At present, more than six billion people call planet Earth home.  It seems inevitable that in the lifetime of these inhabitants, the world population will blow out to more than ten billion people - and that will pose questions for the world food supply !

In the developed world we are used to three hearty meals a day, but in third world countries the majority of citizens get by with much less.   Many rely on " subsistence farming " to grow what they eat - and as a consequence they exist on a little rice and some vegetables.   Eating meat is a rare component of their diet.

Industrialization is raising living standards, and one of the first benefits of an increasing income in third world countries is an increase in the quality of meals. Prosperity invites people to eat more food, and meat becomes an item of high demand.

That creates a problem.   Raising cattle and sheep for the meat they create is not cost efficient in regard to the acreage they require, nor the amount of energy needed in ratio to the end product.   If demand for meat continues to rise, so will the price - and there will be an availability problem.  There will simply not be enough to go around to satisfy demand.

It is encouraging to learn that science has solved the problem of growing " artificial meat " in a laboratory.   It is now possible to create a " test tube burger " by using animal muscle in a petri dish to create what looks and tastes " like the real thing " !

At this stage, the cost is prohibitive.  Researchers have spent $ 430,000 and a commercial prduct is probably ten years away - but it is the first step in solving the problem of how we are going to feed those future billions.

Unfortunately, there is the liklihood of a backlash.   Expect a groundswell of spirited opposition to this concept.- just as we have huge numbers of people bitterly opposed to genetically modified plant crops that bear bigger yields and are immune to plant diseases.

It seems part of the human psyche to rebel at the progress we need to solve the problems that expanding numbers of humankind will impose on the survival of the species.

If the nay-sayers have their way - we face the prospect of a very hungry future world !