Dennis Avery discusses food, biofuels and climate change at South Texas Farm and Ranch Show
Biofuels, food and climate change program offered at show's luncheon
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MORE ABOUT DENNIS AVERY
Studied agricultural economics at Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin
Worked with the United States Department of Agriculture as an agricultural analyst
Authored "Saving the Planet with Pesticides and Plastic: The Environmental Triumph of ...
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MORE ABOUT DENNIS AVERY
Studied agricultural economics at Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin
Worked with the United States Department of Agriculture as an agricultural analyst
Authored "Saving the Planet with Pesticides and Plastic: The Environmental Triumph of High-Yield Farming" and Global Food Progress"
Edits "Global Food Quarterly," the newsletter for the Center for Global Food Issues
Source: Dennis Avery and the Center for Global Food Issues Web site
The climate might be changing, but not in the same way many people think, said Dennis Avery, director of the Center for Global Food Issues.
"It has gotten cooler," he said. "We have this 1,500-year warming cycle, we're 150 years into a warming, but temperatures are going down."
Avery presented "Food, Biofuels and Climate: How Can Agriculture Survive" on Thursday during a luncheon at the South Texas Farm and Ranch Show.
He attributed the cooling to Pacific decadal oscillation, a 70-year cycle scientists discovered in 1996.
Even during a warming trend, Avery said, plant species aren't at risk.
Vegetation might be cold-limited, but heat won't kill it off, he said, and it has years to adapt to climate changes. Polar bears, too, have survived changes in the past and should endure current ones just fine.
The author of two books said he is against developing biofuels because they aren't necessary.
Development will lead to rising food prices and will destroy land, he said.
Carbon dioxide levels have only a 22 percent correlation to temperature changes over the past 148 years, he added, while sun spots make up an approximately 79 percent correlation.
If oil reserves are the issue, they shouldn't be, Avery said.
At this point, the United States might have more oil than Saudi Arabia, he said, explaining the U.S. is estimated to have 400 billion barrels in reserve, while Saudi Arabia has 260 billion. Russia comes in at 60 billion.
The world population could grow to 9 billion people by 2050, Avery said during his talk, placing added stress on the global food supply. Rich families often have fewer children but more pets, he added, meaning that pet food consumption will add even more.
Organic farming won't provide the food necessary to feed the masses, he said, advocating for further investigation into genetically-modified crops.
Genetic enhancement also safeguards certain crops against extreme weather, he said, adding that Australia had biotech wheat varieties that saw a 20 percent production increase, even in drought conditions.
Drought-resistant corn could soon be on its way, Avery added.
Leslie Prause, who ranches in Yoakum, said he appreciated Avery's mention of genetic modification and gene stacking.
"That's what it's going to take to feed the world," Prause said.
Herb Wittliff said he also enjoyed Avery's message, particularly regarding the importance of traditional agriculture and farm values in today's society. Avery's discussion regarding better policing of plastics was also interesting, said Wittliff, who farms and works for the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority.
"I thought it was very worthwhile," he said. "Informative."
