The Impact of Climate Change on Food Security

The Impact of Climate Change on Food Security
Student Name
Course
Professor's Name
Date of Submission
The Impact of Climate Change on Food Security
Introduction
The world's population increases drastically despite the environment's inability to sustain such a huge population. Global warming is stripping natural resources to the environment and making it challenging for developing countries to improve the livelihoods of their citizens and access adequate food. Climate changes have a huge influence on these nations because they lead to a loss in biodiversity and access to critical farming regions. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (1), the changing climate adversely affects food distribution to both local and international markets. Climate change has led to challenges in the global food chain, which has increased hunger and starvation in the developing world. The governments have then used the food chain as a weapon to get food to particular areas instead of others. Climate change, hence, continues to increase the world's poor and make the future unpredictable to the billions that fall under the category.
As a United Nations consultant, I will be examining the impact of global warming on the future of population growth and the ability of Brazil to sustain adequate food supplies. According to Mueller and Mueller (2), Brazil is a major producer of various agricultural products, including coffee, maize, rice, wheat, soybeans, and milk, among others. With the country a major producer of agricultural products, climate change has the potential to disrupt its food chain and subject the citizens to hunger and starvation. In Brazil, millions of individuals reside in urban areas, where they face serious issues accessing healthy foods. The growing population is making it challenging for the government to ensure adequate access to food for the citizens. With climate change threatening food production, attention has shifted to the government's ability to mitigate the effects of climate change (34). However, the massive corruption renders the efforts powerless. Resources meant to fight climate change are often misappropriated, hence increasing the problem further. It is crucial to determine ways of addressing the issue of climate change in Brazil to ensure that the country continues to feed its population and maintain its global food chain to the rest of the world.
Climate Change and Global Warming
It is critical to understand the meaning of "climate change" and "global warming." Often, individuals use the two terms interchangeably, not knowing that they are indeed separate terms. On the one hand, global warming refers to the rise in global average temperature (4). There has been a well-documented rise in global temperatures since the 1970s. On the other hand, climate change indicates the climate changes of different areas over time (5). The changes result from an increase in average global temperatures and changes in the water cycle. Climate change can also result from changes in sunlight and the movements of continents over some time. In other words, climate change goes beyond global warming to describe a broader range of changes that are taking place on the planet.
Climate Change and Credibility Issues
The increasing global temperature is associated with widespread alterations in weather patterns. Extreme events like heat waves and large storms are likely to increase with human-induced climate change. It is important to appreciate that changes in weather patterns should be taken with much concern. This is because long-term climate changes have both direct and indirect effects on many aspects of society. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) presented an annual climate report in 2020 detailed the problem. The report demonstrates that global temperature has increased at an average rate of 0.13 degrees Fahrenheit (0.08 degrees Celsius) every ten years since 1880; however, the average rate of increase since 1981 (0.18°C / 0.32°F) has been more than double the same rate (6). The report demonstrates that temperatures are increasing at a higher rate this decade. The amount of future warming depends largely on the ability of nations to come up with measures aimed at addressing the problem. Many authors agree that despite the need to combat climate change and global warming, some individuals have questioned the credibility of the statistics, terming them as "hoax" (7). Those who deny that climate change is a real advocate that there is no need to invest in addressing the problem. However, it is important to appreciate that scientific facts point to the worrying trend of global warming and the negative implications on the planet.
Climate Change and Food Security in Developing Countries
Brazil is located in South America, occupying about 50% of the landmass. It is the fifth-largest country in the world. Brazil is a leading country in the production of agricultural products (8). For instance, 85% of the country's agribusiness GDP comes from the cultivation of rice, beans, corn, sugarcane, cotton, manioc, soybeans, coffee, and sunflower. The country experiences equatorial and tropical climates. The northern and central parts of Brazil experience frequent rainfall and high temperatures. A humid subtropical climate dominates the southern region. Brazil is crucial in agricultural production since it produces a significant fraction of the food consumed globally. The country remains a top exporter of soybeans, sugar, and beef.
Agriculture in Brazil is directly impacted by climate change. Because of the increase in temperatures, the majority of the crops responsible for the agribusiness of Brazil will decline. Of these crops, only sugarcane growing is expected to increase by 2050 since the increasing te...