A new report from the UK's Soil Association has shown that supplies of phosphate rock are being exhausted more quickly than previously believed.
Depleting supplies and rising prices could, the Association said, pose a grave threat to global food security.
'Intensive agriculture is totally dependent on phosphate for the fertility needed to grow crops and grass,' it said in a statement. 'Worldwide 158m tonnes of phosphate rock is mined every year, but the supply is finite. Recent analysis suggests that we may hit ‘peak’ phosphate as early as 2033, after which supplies will become increasingly scarce and more expensive.'
According to the Soil Association, what is required is a radical rethink on how we farm and what we eat so that adequate phosphorus levels can be maintained without reliance on mined phosphate.
The Association urges the increasing use of organic farming methods and and reduced consumption of meat.
No comments yet