Science Fictions

Episode 86: Food and climate

49 snips
Oct 2, 2025
Record crop harvests are astonishing, yet climate change threatens food security. The hosts explore the paradox of technology boosts versus environmental impacts. CO2 is debated as a plant food, but its benefits don’t erase its climate-perils. Yield growth is relying more on sustainable practices as fertilizer use declines. Meanwhile, Sub-Saharan Africa struggles with low yields and limited tech. The conversation concludes with a call for nuanced understanding of food production's carbon footprints and the potential of changing diets to mitigate emissions.
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ANECDOTE

Origin: Hannah Ritchie's Data Deep-Dive

  • Tom mentions Hannah Ritchie's substack and new book Clearing the Air as his info source.
  • He frames the episode around her post on record global harvests in 2025.
INSIGHT

Climate Change Has Held Back Yield Gains

  • Climate change has reduced some crop yields compared with a no-warming counterfactual.
  • Modeling suggests maize and soybeans are a few percent below what they'd be without recent warming.
INSIGHT

CO2 Really Is 'Plant Food'

  • Rising CO2 genuinely boosts plant growth and water-use efficiency.
  • CO2 fertilization can increase yields substantially for some crops in controlled studies.
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