Climate change and conflicts increase global food crisis

Global agriculture and fisheries are suffering from an increase in “food shocks”, or sudden losses in food production, according to an international study led by Tasmanian scientists.

Richard Cottrell, a marine scientist at the University of Tasmania in Hobart, said the main causes of food shocks were extreme weather and geopolitical crises in areas such as the Middle East.

The study was led by researchers from the university’s institute for marine and Antarctic studies and the centre for marine socioecology. The results are published online in the journal Nature Sustainability.