Though I hate to be sceptical on this, and reading Diamond's 'Collapse' at the moment, which gives ample evidence of soil loss and end of civilisations, especially Iceland's 50% which made a great part of the country a soil desert, such headlines do obscure the fact that the human race is adaptable. The 'scare' tone brought to mind Massingham's book 'Prophecy of Famine' in the early 20th century, which did'nt quite come about.
There are answers out there, permaculturists have been addressing them, and though 'organic' has now acquired a cynical tone by most, covering the soil, growing more trees and changing the pattern of our eating is one way forward.
The pessimist would probably point to a truth, that the predictions of nine billion people in the future are just predictions, the reality is that a lot of people are starving and will starve - nature is a grim reaper. China does'nt even bear thinking about with its massive population and environmental degradation of its rivers ;(
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