The Oil Drum | Numbers and the State of the Union Energy segment

264 comments on Numbers and the State of the Union Energy segment

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Leanan on February 1, 2006 - 2:14pm

While I agree with the goals of the article at some point there is only so much energy that can be taken out of the ecosystem each year and have it remain sustainable.

Precisely.

And, I suspect, it's going to take more than conservation. If current trends continue, the U.S. population will be 45% higher by 2050. Peak oil aside, by 2020, the U.S. and Canada, the last remaining major food exporters, will be consuming all the food that they produce. We have some tough choices to make.

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Stormy on February 1, 2006 - 4:09pm

We have to distinguish between exporter and producer here.

Being the biggest exporter does not mean you are the biggest producer. I am trying to do a little research on the largest producers in various foods. I suspect that Russia and China will excel in some areas, even though as in the case of China, their production may not meet their needs in some areas.

Consider the following:

"U.S. processed food imports grew 5.9 percent in 2000 to a record high of $36.8 billion. In the same year, U.S. processed food exports grew 4.0 percent to $30 billion. The $6.8 billion trade deficit in 2000 marked the third consecutive year of progressively larger processed food trade deficits for the United States."

http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/FoodReview/septdec01/

The issue is far more complicated than the above; nonetheless it does reveal that we are not quite in the cat bird's seat.

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264 comments on Numbers and the State of the Union Energy segment

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