We’ve all seen those heartbreaking photos of emaciated polar bears in the Arctic, slumped at ice platforms-they’re the perfect depiction of global warming.
But bears aren’t the only ones that suffer from the increase in temperatures. In fact, a lot of plants, including some of our favorite crops, seem to be diminishing because of climate change.
The list includes potatoes, vanilla, and even avocados. Climate crisis may just end people’s “addiction” to guacamole and chocolate.
Climate Change Is Causing Certain Crops to Disappear
According to Dr. Barbara Goettsch, head of the study published in Plants, People, Planet, the extinction risk currently is linked with the crops’ wild relatives. This is because the soil’s salinity is changing and the plants aren’t able to adapt.
Plus, the temperatures are increasing and due to climate change, the pests and illnesses will also change, which could influence cultivated crops and shortage may happen, Goettsch adds.
The study of Goettsch titled Extinction risk of Mesoamerican Crop Wild Relatives showed that climate change is pushing wild relatives of popular crops to the brink of extinction. Crops like avocados, vanilla, potatoes, wild beans, wild cotton, chili peppers, squash, bananas, husk tomatoes, prunes, apples, and ginger are only a few from the list.
Moreover, the native varieties of vanilla in Central and South America are at the highest risk of extinction whereas cotton is second followed by avocados and then wild potatoes.
Another study done previously and published in Global Citizen concluded that 40 percent of all edible crops are faced with imminent extinction because of climate change.
According to the report, climate change is threatening to create weather, pests, and diseases which the current crops can’t cope with. It also emphasizes that if humanity wants to thrive, humans need to create diverse, strong, and eco-sustainable food production systems.
The Toll on Crops from Climate Change Is High
If climate change continues affecting agriculture and tolling the economy, it could eventually lead to a surge in climate migration. Already, many are fleeing areas that are prone to harsh weather, floods, and wildfires and there’s a major need of doing something before it becomes too late.
The recent study tested 224 species that grow throughout Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. All of them have become prominent both in people’s diets and contributed to the economies globally.
The study discovered many of these crops are dying because of overfarming and overuse of pesticides. Harvests have also been less effective because of the increased temperatures, invasive species, GMOs, deforestation, drought, and wildfires.
If we don’t make something and help change the climate soon, our morning cup of coffee and our late-night chocolate bar may be taken away by the disastrous effects of climate change.
And, this time may come sooner than we think.
Considering it will impact low-income communities, particularly ones that rely on agriculture for food security, and the economy, the result could be catastrophic, according to experts’ predictions.
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