Will There Be Enough Food to Eat?

THE French call it nouriture. Greeks know it as trophé. To the Japanese it is shokuji. What is it in English? Food!

Whatever you call it in your language, does the thought of good food make your mouth water when you are hungry? Yes, good food is very desirable, delightful to the taste and nourishing to the body.

On the other hand, the thought of hunger is frightening. Its consequences are devastating. It stunts physical and mental growth and robs millions of their chance to lead a normal life. But it does more: It kills.

True, if you live in places such as Europe and North America, you may not give much thought to hunger. Of course, you may be distressed at the high prices you now have to pay for food, but few people in such areas are actually hungry.

Elsewhere it is a different story.

How Many Affected?

It may shock you to know that today about one billiona people are hungry. That estimate comes from the World Food Council, an agency of the United Nations. It is about 25 percent of the world’s population! Hence, many authorities consider the struggle to get enough to eat the greatest problem facing mankind.

But is the problem at least diminishing? No. “The world hunger problem is getting worse rather than better,” declared Sol Lonowitz, chairman of a United States presidential commission on world hunger. He added: “A major crisis lies ahead unless a concerted effort is made to avert it.”

Similarly, U.S. News & World Report said: “A food crisis more serious than the present energy crunch threatens world peace in the next 20 years unless the U.S. and other nations take bold action.”

Why is hunger a threat to world peace? Because the frustrated desire of poor people to attain a decent standard of living is the most potentially explosive force in the world today. A billion angry and desperate people represent a real threat to international order.

The threat may be even greater. The Royal Bank of Canada estimates that “as much as 40 percent of the world population suffers from undernourishment.” That is over 1.6 billion people! As an example, in one African country it is said that 45 percent of the children die before they reach the age of five.

Why Worsening?

Why is the situation worsening? Are there not reports of more food being grown in some countries? Yes, there have been some increases. But world population has increased even faster.

Thus, on the average, there has been a net decrease in the amount of food available to each person. For example, a study by World-Watch Institute shows the following:

ANNUAL FOOD PRODUCTION PER PERSON WORLD WIDE

1970-76 Peak 1979

Fish 43 lbs. 36 lbs.

Beef 26 ʺ 24 ʺ

Mutton 4.2 ʺ 4 ʺ

Grain 754 ʺ 701 ʺ

What is the world population growth now? About 70 to 80 million annually, equivalent to a new Pakistan each year. In addition, such population growth is causing ever greater use of farmland for nonfarm uses. More homes, shopping centers, factories, roads, airports, schools and other things are being built on what used to be farmland.

Every day throughout the world, thousands of acres are taken out of food production for such uses. Sooner or later, mankind will feel the pinch of this missing farmland. In the United States the loss of actual or potential farmland is estimated to be an average of four square miles (10 km²) a day. That is the equivalent of a strip of land a half-mile (0.8-km) wide running from New York to San Francisco​—each year!

Overgrazing marginal farmlands is causing some of them to turn into deserts. A United Nations official estimated that already the Sahara desert is advancing southward at the rate of six kilometers (about four miles) a year, mainly because of overgrazing. Other deserts, including the Arabian, the Kalahari in South-West Africa, the Sonoran of Mexico and the southern United States, are reported also to be expanding.

The African magazine To the Point reported of these deserts: “They encroach on 60,000 km² [about 23,000 square miles] of arable land every year and in some areas the march proceeds at up to 11 km [7 miles] a year.” It added: “Scientists have now named the process ‘skin cancer of the earth’ and say it is spreading like a malignant growth. They estimate that up to one per cent of the world’s arable lands become deserts every year. . . . Most experts think that man is primarily to blame for the process. Wasteful agriculture and over-exploitation of the land . . . is the root cause.”

Another problem is the high price of fuel, a key cost in the production of food. Fertilizers, tractors, trucks and other machinery are dependent on petroleum. Agricultural expert Lester Brown said: “The combination of rising energy costs and the diminishing returns on the use of chemical fertilizers also contributes to the leveling off of grain and cereal production.”

Still one more negative element is being added to the already critical food supplies: more and more grain is now being turned into alcohol to use as fuel in cars and trucks. As countries use more grain to make fuel, the grain left for food will of necessity be less.

However, are not newer methods of food production turning the tide? For example, what about the “green revolution”?

[Footnotes]

What Happened to the “Green Revolution”?

NEARLY 40 years ago, agricultural experts began to experiment with new types of wheat. These “plant breeders” were trying to produce greater yields for the same acreage. They succeeded.

In the years since then, the results of their experiments have been extended to rice. Large areas of these new strains of wheat and rice were planted in Central and South America, and in Asia. Yields increased dramatically. Thus, some thought that here was an answer to some of the world’s food shortages.

What Happened?

Recently, prominent agricultural expert Lester Brown was asked: “Whatever happened to the ‘green revolution’ that was supposed to end famine?” He answered: “The green revolution was never intended to solve the food problem​—only to buy time to get population growth under control. . . . there are no agricultural technologies that will keep up with that growth.”

So the “green revolution” did bring some increases in food production. But the huge growth of population in the meantime largely overwhelmed it.

Also, the “green revolution” has an “Achilles’ heel,” a vulnerable spot. What is this weakness? It is the fact that while it increased yields, the basis for it was the much greater use of fertilizer, pesticides, irrigation and mechanization. As noted in the previous article, much of that is based on the availability of petroleum to run the tractors and other machines, as well as to produce the fertilizers and chemicals used in the “green revolution.”

Not only is there an energy squeeze now, but the cost of oil has “gone through the roof.” The very countries that need food the most are in the worst position to afford the oil, and without it the “green revolution” cannot be sustained.

Time magazine, commenting on this before recent additional rises in oil prices, said:

“Now they are paying the price of a 1600% rise in OPEC prices since 1970; they cannot do without oil but cannot afford to buy it.

“Admits an official of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization: ‘The guy who was enlightened enough to follow our advice to buy machinery and fertilizer is in a bind, while the farmer who kept his water buffalo is in much better shape.’”

Another paradox within the poorer countries is that usually only the wealthier farmers can afford to pay for the new technology necessary to make a success of the “green revolution.” The poor farmer who most needs the increased food production cannot afford it.

Complicating the picture further is the fact that most of earth’s four billion people are poor. So even if increases in food production did keep pace with rising population, these poor people could not afford to pay for a decent diet.

A New Breakthrough?

Will some dramatic new development in food production save the day? Experts are pessimistic.

The Royal Bank of Canada Monthly Letter says: “Although the green revolution has done wonders, no one pretends that it is the whole solution to the food problem which now faces humanity.” It adds: “Science alone cannot be expected to do the job.”

U.S. News & World Report asked Lester Brown: “Are there any breakthroughs in sight that might dramatically increase food supplies in the future?” He answered:

“I wish I could say yes, but the chances are against it.

“Looking at what’s on the drawing board today, it’s very difficult to see anything leading to a quantum jump of the sort we have had since World War II​—with developments such as the hybridization of corn, the enormous growth in use of chemical fertilizer, the rapid growth in irrigation, and high-yielding wheat and rice.”

Does this mean that there is no solution? Not at all. There is, and it is one that is certain to come, one that will prove completely satisfying. However, until that time comes, can some people benefit by learning what others are using for food?

What People Can Eat

WHEN we talk about food, in certain parts of the world people think of such things as meat at least once a day, different vegetables and fruits, various desserts and beverages.

However, hundreds of millions of people may see little or no meat in their entire lifetime. They have a steady diet of just a few foods, such as rice three times a day, with just a few vegetables. Perhaps on occasion they will have a piece of fish or other meat. Either a better diet is unavailable or they are too poor to afford it.

Yet people the world over eat many things that could help some hungry people elsewhere.

What Is Food?

Food is defined as “nutritive material absorbed or taken into the body of an organism for purposes of growth or repair.” It is “anything that nourishes, develops or sustains.”

In view of this definition, it seems that there is virtually no end to what can be called food in the plant, animal and insect worlds. In the plant world, for instance, mankind today unfortunately relies on just a few basic crops for food. But at one time or another in history people have eaten several thousand different plant types.

One group of scientists reported on 30 little-known species of tropical plants that could help feed people, but that are not now being utilized. An African scientist noted thousands of species of plants there, but only a few were being used, such as corn, rice and sweet potatoes. And these were “borrowed” from other cultures.

Different Foods

Some say that other little-known crops are too exotic to be eaten. But one scientist answered: “Remember, almost everything is eaten by somebody somewhere.”

For example, a scientist recommended earthworms mixed with other food as a high protein source. Are you surprised at that suggestion? Well, Science Digest reported that a woman who majored in home economics at a California university “does eat insects regularly, her favorites being the termite, the grasshopper, the bee and the tribolium, or flour beetle.”

A taste panel sampled some of her “delicacies.” What did they think of them? After trying her termite pilaf, bee won ton soup, and jiminy bread (which includes either ground-up crickets or grasshoppers), the panel responded enthusiastically. One member said: “Termite pilaf was my favorite.”

American anthropologist Aubrey Williams sampled “fish pizza” made with codfish scraps, also caterpillars, roasted grasshoppers, butterflies, earthworms and bee cookies. His response? “I know it sometimes sounds disgusting, but when you stop to think of it, it’s not much different from eating snails. And peeling a locust or cockroach to eat isn’t much different from peeling a shrimp.”

Attitudes Vary

Since all people everywhere are biologically the same, their bodies can be sustained on the same kinds of nutrients. Why, then, is it that not all eat everything that others eat?

Well, how do you feel when you hear about people somewhere eating dog, cat, rat, mouse, snake, frog, earthworm, horse, monkey or elephant? Do you get upset? Whatever your feelings, remember that what you cherish as a favorite food may be considered loathsome by somebody elsewhere.

Therefore, the problem may not be with what is eaten as food. It may depend on where you were born and on what kind of food you have been accustomed to eating since childhood. It could also depend on your religious convictions or your cultural background.

For instance, it may seem revolting to a person raised in North America to hear that people in certain parts of Africa relish the earthworm. Likewise, it could be disgusting to an individual reared in parts of Africa to learn that some people in Europe or America enjoy the frog as meat.

A person in India may be filled with anger to hear that the Europeans and the Americans use the flesh of the cow for food. To a Moslem, it is sacrilegious to eat pork. And some Europeans would laugh at the idea of using corn for adult food, but certain varieties of corn are much desired by other people.

A Balanced View

Hence, the fact that some people eat foods that others consider unusual or revolting is largely a matter of the mind. Since people can eat these things and be sustained in one part of the world, from a physical standpoint everyone else could be nourished by them too.

Man is surrounded by all kinds of foods. But his choosy character has brought about his likes and dislikes. That may be all right in times of plenty, but in times of hunger it denies him nourishment.

Interestingly, concerning man’s original food supply, the Bible says: “Here I [God] have given to you all vegetation bearing seed which is on the surface of the whole earth and every tree on which there is the fruit of a tree bearing seed. To you let it serve as food.” (Gen. 1:29) Later, God made this addition: “Every moving animal that is alive may serve as food for you. As in the case of green vegetation, I do give it all to you. Only flesh with its soul​—its blood—​you must not eat.”​—Gen. 9:3, 4.

It is apparent that God provided a great variety of plant, animal and insect life that could be eaten to sustain life. That is why we are told further in the Bible that “every creation of God is fine, and nothing is to be rejected [as food] if it is received with thanksgiving.”​—1 Tim. 4:4, 5.

What Is the Real Solution?

TRUE, more things could be eaten by people than are eaten now. But being realistic, we cannot think that everybody will suddenly develop a taste for what he does not want to eat. That is why some will continue to go hungry when nearby there may be a source of nutrition, but too different from what they customarily eat.

Nor, as previously has been observed, will some new breakthrough by human efforts solve the problem. If such breakthroughs had been possible, there would not now be 1,000,000,000 people going to bed hungry every night. So we cannot escape the fact that, however sincere and noble the proposed remedies, the race to feed the poorer part of earth’s population is being lost.

Dr. Walter Santos of the Brazilian Nutrition Society said: “There is almost a general frustration in all developed countries as regards the promises and forecasts made and what was achieved. Everywhere there is a desire, a necessity for drastic changes in the development of policies hitherto adopted, for they have aggravated rather than eased the social and economic differences.”

Why has this been the case? Because the answer to the food problem lies beyond the scope of what humans can accomplish. The smartest scientists, the wisest political leaders, the most intelligent economists have not been able to solve the problem after all the time, effort and money put into it. Nor will they in the future.

Man’s selfishness and greed, his thirst for power, his willingness to benefit while others suffer, all stand in the way. And those are only some of the deep-rooted problems that block a permanent solution.

If man is not likely to come up with the solution, what then? Are those scientists right who foretell coming mass starvation on a scale dwarfing anything mankind has yet experienced? Is there no way out?

Real Solution at Hand

The solution is at hand? How can that be? Have we not just explained that experts view the future with dread?

Yes, but the very facts of today’s dismal conditions and outlook are an encouragement. In what way? In that all these things are part of the evidence that we are nearing the real solution. Note what Jesus Christ said in a prophecy about our time: “Men become faint out of fear and expectation of the things coming upon the inhabited earth.”​—Luke 21:26.

Present-day famine, as well as many other events, pinpoint our generation as being at “the conclusion of the system of things,” which Jesus foretold. For among the things Jesus foretold was that “there will be food shortages.”​—Matt. 24:3, 7, 8.

The last book of the Bible prophetically spoke about the ride of four symbolic “horsemen” in our time. One result would be high prices for food: “A whole day’s wage for a loaf of bread,” is the way Revelation 6:6 is rendered by the Weymouth translation. This fits exactly this comment made by the New York Times: “For many people the price of a single meal now exceeds a day’s income.”

The worst food shortages have taken place in our era. So have many other events unprecedented in history, beginning with the first world war, from 1914-1918. That war was the turning point of modern history. It was one of many events that clearly indicated that we were entering the time period known as “the conclusion of the system of things,” or “the end of the world.”​—Authorized Version.

A New Order of Abundance

Happily, though, Bible prophecy gives us a preview of a marvelous change that will shortly occur earth wide when this time period comes to its finish. It says:

“‘Now at last God has his dwelling among men! . . . He will wipe every tear from their eyes; there shall be an end to death, and to mourning and crying and pain; for the old order has passed away!’

“Then he who sat on the throne [God] said, ‘Behold! I am making all things new!’”​—Rev. 21:3-5, “New English Bible.”

Thus, what world events really mean, including the gloomy outlook regarding the food situation, is that we are nearing the end of the present unsatisfactory system now dominating mankind. God’s promise is that shortly he will intervene in man’s affairs to crush this bad system, paving the way for a new era that will bring about enormous transformations. It will mean, as Peter foretold, a “new heavens and a new earth.”​—2 Pet. 3:13.

Yes, a new government of God will take over human affairs and direct them from the heavenly realm. (Matt. 6:9, 10) That government will bring about marvelous changes on earth. It will bring an end to social injustice, to selfish economics and greedy people. It will also bring an end to divisive national barriers. And forever it will end hunger, starvation and poverty. Gone for all time will be the bloated bellies and pencil-thin legs and arms of the starving. Gone forever will be the unhappy prospect hundreds of millions of people now have of going to bed hungry every night.

So we are fast nearing the time when the specter of hunger will be a thing of the past, never to raise its ugly head again. Instead, God’s new order on earth will be marked by an abundance of good things, including “a banquet of well-oiled dishes” and ‘plenty of grain, an overflow.’ Then there will be more than enough food for everyone to eat.​—Isa. 25:6; Ps. 72:16.