Food and Covid-19
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One of my geologist friends wrote this, thought i'd share;
<<Food and Covid-19
Hello everyone, my name is Carl Rehnberg, as some of you know my daytime job is as the CEO of multi-national food company. This might surprise many, most see me as a geophysicist (volcanologist), but that is nowadays just a hobby.
Now let us talk about starvation and Covid-19. We operate 4 factories in 4 different countries, all are closed due to Covid-19. The same goes for most multi-national food companies.
Every day I go to work I see the available food supply dwindle, currently it is half of what it used to be. I guess that sounds like boring statistics, it is not. Every day I worry. If anyone is interested, I can discuss the minutia of it ad nauseam.
For the last couple of years, the food industry has become ever more open with the problem that there is not enough surplus food in the world to manage a larger crisis. In the seventy’s humanity had roughly 6 months of surplus food, the same figure for 2019 was 2 weeks.
The difference is due to many things. An exploding world population, soil erosion, climate change, pollution, the list just goes on.
Those two weeks of surplus food is now gone, and it will take a full growing cycle to return to that number, if it is even possible. Instead we now have shortages in the supply chain. So far that shortage is out on the container and ships level, but it will soon be in the distribution hubs, and after that your stores will run dry.
If the entire food industry opened up fully tomorrow that is where we would end up, with temporary shortages, but nobody would starve.
But next week we are in trouble, a couple of more weeks and people will start starving on a broader scale. 3 weeks after that people will start to die from starvation and malnutrition, and that is in the industrialised world.
At the same time as Covid-19 is ravaging human’s, pigs are ravaged by the African Swine Fever. And, even though it does not transmit to humans many will die from that too, the projection is that 50 percent of our porky friends will die from it. Pork prices are already up 100 percent.
Anyway, I just wanted to tell you about the other side of the coin. At the going rate more of you will starve to death than will ever die from Covid-19. Well, unless at least we open up the food industry fully again, on a global scale.
Also, the transports across borders must start to run, otherwise we will not get the food to your table. >>
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Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
https://www.law.com
https://www.law.com/dailybusinessreview/2020/04/15/covid-19-pandemic-add...
<<The recently floated proposal to cut farmworker wages as a means of helping to shore up the nation’s food supply during the COVID-19 pandemic is both misguided and counterproductive. Now more than ever, federal, state and local governments need to expand support for the farmworkers who harvest the nation’s food, as well as the truckers who transport those harvests and keep the country’s food distribution system operating.
As if the trade war with China was not burden enough, the COVID-19 pandemic has put new stresses on America’s food production system. Harvesters are trying to prepare for the spring harvest season in many southern states even as they now face growing labor shortages due to coronavirus contagion. Since 2006, the number of H-2A visas has multiplied from less than 50,000 to more than 150,000 today. Guest workers constitute about 10% of the nation’s agricultural workforce, and some experts expect that figure could double. Farmers’ challenges include: streamlining the issuance of enough H-2A (temporary agricultural worker) visas to meet the growing demand for more farm workers; improving access to basic food supplies for migrating farmworkers traveling from harvest to harvest across our nation; and providing farmworkers (both domestic and H2A guest workers) with safe, CDC-compliant working conditions, living quarters where relevant, and access to proper medical care to curb the spread of the disease among harvesters.
In the midst of these challenges, the White House reportedly is directing Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to develop a plan for reducing wage rates for foreign guest workers on American farms, in order to help U.S. farmers struggling during the coronavirus outbreak. Cutting wages is the wrong way to approach this challenge.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
How cone when you Google this
How cone when you Google this guy's name, no person in the food industry comes up? Russian troll impersonating random geologist? The geologist that does show up seems to have a full time job.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
Fact Check: could we
Fact Check: could we experience a food shortage amid pandemic?
Industries all across the country are feeling the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, especially agriculture. This is raising the question if a possible food shortage is on its' way.
While many farms and factories have suspended business during the coronavirus, don't expect to see any real changes to food availability in the coming weeks.
In fact-- there's more than enough food to supply the country.
The real issue is that farms and factories across the US aren't able to export, which is significantly affecting the economy.
Clinton Griffiths, Host of Ag Day Television, said we are not running out of food and there is not a shortage.
He says the biggest problem facing agricultural business is that more people are choosing to buy food at the grocery, instead of eating out.
While this is causing a significant change in the supply-chain, the biggest concern is for your neighbors.
“If you want to talk about food concern, the real concern is for people that can't afford to buy it right now or they've run out of money for next months,” Griffiths said. “So that to me is where we're seeing these long lines of demand and real concern about people being food insecure. If there's anything we can do as a community, its help during these times. Those that have can help provide for other people.”
https://www.wndu.com/content/news/Fact-Check-could-we-experience-a-food-...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
yeah -- if it's the same guy
yeah -- if it's the same guy you are quoting, the Volcano Cafe dude's from Sweden and works for a company with one employee doing investments. The site he runs has some nice pics and aobut a dozen of the same people posting for the past ten years (hey, same as this place). But apparently his theories are not well regarding in the volcano community once he predicted Iceland was going to blow up. And it looks like his PHD (he calls himself doctor) is in audio research or something totally unrelated to geology.
That's from 3 minutes of Google research.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Old Fart Message Board
Aside from whatever is in the
Aside from whatever is in the original post, U.S. most likely does have a more than plentiful food supply for now. There are places across the world that will definitely feel effects of food shortages, and in Africa there mass swarms of locusts eating crops to add to the pandemic. If you mix that with the effects of Covid 19 then Africa will most likely really be experiencing some issues. Depending on how long this whole thing goes on for it could get worse in certain regions around the world. I have read that farmers are concerned about hiring helping hands because of the pandemic and with less workers the production will most like be slower just like production of virtually everything all over the world during this times. If people would shop like they normally would and not try to hoard food and be greedy then it would be better but there does not seem to any kind of shortage of food at this time. There Is concern of production of any kind where there are a lot of workers, that if covid 19 somehow starts to spread through manufacturers and facilities then places may have to shut down.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: El Nino
>>>But next week we are in
>>>But next week we are in trouble, a couple of more weeks and people will start starving on a broader scale. 3 weeks after that people will start to die from starvation and malnutrition,
Umm you can live for 7 weeks without food. I don't see people starving to death in 3 weeks.
7 minutes without air
7 days without water
7 weeks without food
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: (~)};)StealYourFace
Let them eat rocks...
"Let them eat rocks"...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Def. High
>>>>>7 minutes without air
>>>>>7 minutes without air
7 days without water
7 weeks without food
After 4 min. w/o air you get brain damage.
After 4 days w/o water you get kidney damage.
After 4 weeks w/o food your body starts to consume itself.
Just sayin'.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Dr. Benway
seven
seven
seven
seven is my name
seven come and seven go
and seven
STILL REMAIN
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: El Nino
Wasn't saying it was good for
Wasn't saying it was good for just that you will survive, and the world record for holding breath is a 22 min free dive which is fucking insane
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
I don't food supply being a
I don't see food supply being a big problem in the United States. They are dumping milk and letting produce rot because the bottom dropped out on wholesale markets driven by now shuttered schools, institutions, and restaurants.
Where its going to be a problem is in the developing world. Here is a recent UN report on the socio-economic impacts, including malnutrition, of the Covid-19 pandemic and related mitigation efforts on children:
https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/policy_brief_on_covid_impact_o...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
The point being someone is
The point being someone is very probably lying and/or posting under a guy-who's-hobby-is-volcanos'-blog.
And this shit will get on Facebook or some dbmb and propagate. That's how it's done -- how propaganda is spread in today's world. How clever people manipulate readers who are desperately seeking info that will help them survive in uncertain times.
It worked - we're talking about it.
The message contains all the right elements for believability: make it seen valid by using a (fake) credible source (a Dr's name), publish in a (fake) credible publication (a "science" blog), make it pertinent (you and your family will starve, unless...).
So moral of the story is keep your bullshit detector fully loaded and question who benefits by spreading this info?
"unless at least we open up the food industry fully again, on a global scale. Also, the transports across borders must start to run, otherwise we will not get the food to your table. "
I'm guessing someone that wants to export pigs or something internationally. State actor.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thumbkinetic
The guy doesn't understand
The guy doesn't understand apostrophes. I'm skeptical.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
Way to attack the messenger.
Way to attack the messenger. I've known Carl for a while, one of those crazy genius Swedes, speaks several languages, and I've always enjoyed Volcano Cafe. His food biz is in East Africa, where I use to live. But, please continue....
(if you do searches in Swedish, you might have better luck)
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
In reality-ville he's from
In reality-ville he's from Sweden and not a CEO of anything but his own one man company. He most likely didn't write the article or probably doesn't know his blog's email list got hacked.
Here's one that got debunked --- the virus is man-made because it has bits of HIV in it.
(Read for yourself, but basically a whole bunch of things in nature have similar little strands of DNA and if the sample was bigger the "evidence" disappears.)
"The only thing accurate about these articles is that Nobel Prize winner and virologist Luc Montagnier did in fact make these claims. Although he holds impressive scientific credentials, his claims run contrary to credible scientific evidence. And despite having won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2008 for his co-discovery of the link between HIV and AIDS, Montagnier now promotes widely discredited theories such as the pseudoscience of homeopathy and that autism is caused by bacteria that emit electromagnetic waves.
Articles which repeat Montagnier’s claims without critically evaluating their veracity exhibit the common “appeal to authority” fallacy, in which something is assumed to be true simply because the person saying it is considered to be an expert, thereby misleading readers into believing that this theory is scientifically credible. This demonstrates the importance of verifying scientific claims with other experts in the same field, rather than simply taking such claims from a single expert at face value."
https://healthfeedback.org/claimreview/claim-by-nobel-laureate-luc-monta...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
I did a search in Swedish. I
I did a search in Swedish. I have Google translator too. I read the whole volcano cafe website.
Why don't you email him to find out if he wrote that article? I see his email listed. He's not listed anywhere in the Swedish directory as a CEO of a food company.
He's probably a good volcano guy -- I read some of his work -- though others don't consider all his Iceland claims credible -- But do you really believe he knows about pigs?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
I'm pretty sure this is your
I'm pretty sure this is your friend. Swedish Linked In says he's been employed at that investment company for the last 11 years... not a CEO of anything.
Say, you don't think he invests in international pigs, do you? Not me.... I think he got hacked.
Like I said --- maybe he knows volcanoes -- I like his site -- I like volcanoes, I like rocks..I really like rocks.... but remind me why I should listen to the good doctor about the food supply in America?
Because he's your friend or he knows about volcanoes?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lance minimum goad Newberry
I imagine the White House
I imagine the White House still has lots of that McDonald's left over from when that team came to visit.
I don't think that shit ever goes bad, so Donny's set for a while.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
Carl was ahead of the curve
Carl was ahead of the curve where viruses are concerned. In 2014
On Chillis, the chili-fruit is a wonder of nature. Regular use will lower your blood cholesterol and it will also drop pounds off your waist since it increases the metabolic rate. It is also a good anti-viral agent, so you get sick a lot less if you eat it daily. And, it will keep you from growing an ulcer. Capcaicin (the hot stuff) kills the Helicobacter Pylorii bacteria so you do not get bacterial ulcers.
There are several hard to get bacteria that dies out of exposure, but the problem is that the capsaicin is not nice to inject into the bloodstream, so using it as a broad-spectrum antiviral is not really possible.
Noodler -- my point has nothing to do with Carl personally -- I have no idea really who he is. (maybe my quick Swedish search got the wrong guy)..... other than some old guy that writes a volcano blog and "knows stuff." Obviously, you take him seriously. But don't expect me to believe some random dude that has nothing but an opinion. Ya got any friends that are actually in the food supply business?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
Here's his food biz, mostly
Here's his food biz, mostly nuts and dried fruits (cashew and coconut products, etc)
https://www.nutsscandinavia.com/?fbclid=IwAR11Oeip180VdtG-y3RTL1t_tPwSh2...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
Thank you. If you are
Thank you. If you are interested in the subject of starving, I think you should consider some of the info presented here -- it seems more credible and less sensationalistic to me (your volcano guy says he's all about science, so I think he'd find it informative).
Food Distribution 101: What Happens When the Food Supply is Disrupted by a Pandemic
BY LISA HELD
Business, Coronavirus, Food Access, Food and Farm Labor
Posted on: April 15, 2020
"For now, what we know is that the country is in the midst of a rapid shift in terms of the kinds of foods that will get to shelves and how they get there—as well as shifts in who is available to work, how those workers are kept safe, and new restrictions on movement between countries (and sometimes, cities). With all this in mind, now is the time to understand what U.S. food distribution, under the best of circumstances, looks like."
https://civileats.com/2020/04/15/food-distribution-101-what-happens-when...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
I'll read it when I get a
I'll read it when I get a chance, but I believe his biz works in Europe / Africa / Asia, and the specifics he relates are generally on the complications within those economies of trade
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
Ok so basically, your friend
Ok so basically, your friend the volcano guy is losing money in the organic cashew business due to international shipping problems. No wonder he wants restrictions rolled back. But I don't think America will starve for lack of organic cashews..... except the ones at the Portland Whole Foods -- there will be riots. I will stock up with this newfound insider information. Now, what's he know about pigs again?
"Nuts Scandinavia ™ started as a family-owned chain of bakeries in Denmark in 2007. The company started working as an importer and distributor of nuts, dried fruits and bakery products in 2009. In 2018, our head office moved to Sweden and the company expanded further by starting to produce Organic Cashew in hot Tanzania and Organic Coconut in sunny Sri Lanka.
All the time, Nuts Scandinavia ™ has adhered to the famous ideals that are part of Danish bakery culture such as quality, fast deliveries and a love for what we do. The company is still family owned together with the management team, which guarantees the quality and durability of everything we do.
Because we have large demanding customers who produce organic products and Raw Food, we get a large volume of our products. It allows us to keep our famous low prices directly to the customer through our website, without compromising on our high quality and service."
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
Bump for calling it to
Bump for calling it to everyones attention.... way back when, believe it or not
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: MeditateontheQ
Thanks for the bump, Noodler.
Thanks for the bump, Noodler.
The more food people can grow for themselves, the better.
Eating items in their season from your local region reduces carbon emissions.
People are too used to having access to any food they want out of their local season.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Alan R
Grow your own whenever
Grow your own whenever possible. Thanks to my wife and her judicious use of frost fabric in our garden, we even get various fresh salad greens throughout most, or all, of the East Coast winter. I'm always amazed at a January harvest.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Rasputin O'Leary
Covid demands a fine
Covid demands a fine Zinfandel