HAMILTON, Canada - A research paper says Canadian farmers could reap better prices for their crops due to climate change. The paper printed in the prestigious journal Science says rising temperatures are already starting to slow the growth rate of crop yields almost everywhere in the world.Canada and the United States are among the very few places where harvests have been unaffected by climate change. That means Canadian farmers will have a greater share of global crop production.
- And it means rising demand will also fetch them a higher price for their harvests.
- The study, out of California's Stanford University, estimates that climate change will boost average prices of wheat, corn, soybeans and rice by more than six per cent.
Analysis showed that two-thirds of countries in the world have already experienced statistically significant temperature increases for corn and rice cropland. Three-quarters of the world’s wheat lands and about half its soybean acreage have experienced similar warming.The worst-affected countries include those in Eastern Europe, Russia, Turkey, Mexico and China. Canada and the U.S. had little temperature shift, so there’s been little effect on crops.
The net result of climate change has been slightly good for rice and soybeans and slightly bad for wheat and corn. Because wheat and corn account for a greater proportion of the world’s food supply, the overall effect is negative.
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