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New study predicts climate change could cause beer prices to soar

If all the data on global warming hasn’t scared you yet, maybe this will: Rising temperatures could mean less beer. A new study published in the peer-reviewed British journal Nature Plants reported that current predictions of the next few decades see beer becoming scarce and thus more far expensive — as much as twice the cost by some estimates. This scarcity will be the result of a decrease in the production of barely, the main ingredient in beer. Scientists have long known that barely is one of the most heat-sensitive crops. The predicted severe droughts and extreme heat could cause significant losses. Average barely crop losses could range from three to 16 percent, depending on the severity of the climate change. In the US alone, shortages could reduce the amount Americans drink by up to 900 million gallons — that’s 9 billion bottles of beer! According to the study, this decrease in…

Why you might need to find a new favorite ice cream flavor

Vanilla ice cream is the Old Faithful of the frozen treat world. Not only is it America’s favorite flavor, but it’s an essential part of floats, splits, Blizzards, and apple pie a la mode. So why then, is this beloved summer scoop starting to disappear from shop menus? Reuters reported, a March 2018 cyclone in Madagascar, the country that harvests 80 percent of the world’s vanilla, has damaged plantations. About 30 percent of the crop was estimated to be lost, but the true extent of the damage won’t be known until harvest time in July. A shortage of the popular spice led to a crippling prices last year, and with the new crop damage, those prices are estimated to continue this summer. Costs of vanilla pods have risen by up to 500 percent. The valuable commodity sold for around $20 a kg (about 2 pounds) in 2010, but now goes for around $500 a kg…

You’ll soon be spending more for that cheap wine

Just when you found a few good, cheap wines to rely on, they’re about to get way more expensive. According to data from the Paris-based International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV), wine production was down this year to the lowest production levels seen since 1957. According to Reuters, it’s the weather causing the problem. Three of the world’s top wine producers, Italy, France and Spain, were hit by harsh and unusual weather last year, like drought, hailstorms and late spring frost, leading to an overall drop of 14.6 percent in production. The 2017 harvest only brought 25 billion liters of wine. That’s down from the 2015 harvest which produced 27.6 billion liters, and the 2016 harvest which brought 26.7 billion liters. The continent accounts for 65 percent of global wine production. The OIV told the Independent that this doesn’t necessarily mean there will be a shortage of wine unless the weather conditions and poor harvest…

No more margaritas: why we might see a tequila shortage soon

All you margarita fans out there, let’s get serious. Experts are projecting a massive world-wide tequila shortage until 2021, and unfortunately, yes, your Friday night binges are partially to blame. According to Reuters, a shortage of the agave plant — the plant used to make the liquor — is the problem. The price of the the blue-tinged spikey-leaved succulent has increased six-fold in just two years, causing the price to jump from 3.85 pesos per kilo to 22. Agave plants normally take seven or eight years to reach maturity. The report states that only 17.7 million agaves were planted in 2011 — and 42 million are needed to supply the 140 registered tequila companies. This shortage is forcing farmers to harvest agaves that have not yet reached maturity — causing a downward spiral for several upcoming years. Tequila has gained popularity in recent years with total U.S. sales up 7.4 percent between 2015 and 2016. That amounts…

Maine blueberry crop hit hard by disease, lack of pollination

Bad news for pie lovers. Maine’s wild blueberry crop is likely to be much smaller this year than in recent summers because the industry is contending with troubles such as disease and a lack of pollination. The New England state is the wild blueberry capital of the U.S. In recent years, crop sizes have soared and prices have plummeted. The crop grew a little less than one percent last year to almost 102 million pounds (46 million kilograms), while prices hit a 10-year low of 27 cents per pound to farmers. University of Maine horticulture professor David Yarborough says that is changing this year. He says “mummy berry” disease and other factors could cut the crop as much as 36 percent this summer. Because oversupply has been driving down prices in recent years, the farmers had already decreased their efforts with the fruit crop. Yarborough said a shortage of bees and other pollinators…

California drought sends avocado prices soaring

Guacamole and avocado toast are about to cost you a lot more green. Between an intense heat wave, summer drought and heavy winter rains, California, the nation’s leading avocado producer, has suffered a significant shortfall of fruits this year. Forecasts expect production to plunge as much as 46% to 215 million pounds, down from 401 million pounds in 2016. “We lost fruit that would have have sized up to be this year’s crop,”  Jan DeLyser, vice president of marketing for the California Avocado Commission, a trade group for avocado growers, told the Los Angeles Times. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average cost of an avocado jumped to $1.25 last week — up from $1.14 last year at the same time and just 94 cents at the start of summer 2016. Mexico, the leading international avocado supplier to the U.S., suffered similar weather this year and is able to send fewer boxes across the border, adding…

Global vanilla shortage will see pastry, ice cream prices soar

The world-wide vanilla shortage is coming to an ice cream cone near you. Pastry chefs and ice cream makers alike are looking to cut back overall consumption due to the rising cost of fair-trade vanilla, meaning that the recipes of our favorite summer sweets could be effected. And we have no one but ourselves to blame. The high demand from consumers, in recent years, switching to all-natural foods has caused the shortage. The problem was then compounded by major corporations like Nestle and Hershey’s that, in response to consumer demand, declared they were then switching from cheaper, chemically created synthetic versions of vanilla to all-natural varieties, too — meaning that they want vanilla from orchid seeds, and not factories. Factories can crank out the synthetic stuff around the clock, but there just aren’t enough vanilla pods in the world to meet demand. A few years ago, a 1-gallon bottle of organic, fair-trade vanilla would cost about $64 — today,…

Southern peach shortage predicted for summer

If you’re from the south, chances are you know summer as the season for a seemingly endless supply of peaches. Peaches are such a part of Georgia that streets and schools bear their name, while the license plate and even ‘I voted’ stickers are adorned with their image. But growers say a massive shortage is in store for this year’s Southern crop. An ill-timed three-day freeze in March paired with an unseasonably warm winter has wiped out much of the Deep South’s peach crop. The already finicky fruit trees were so confused by the weather that many didn’t bear any fruit at all, leading some experts to estimate the production in Georgia will reach only about a quarter of what it was in 2016, when the state produced 43,000 tons of peaches. South Carolina is the country’s number two peach producing state — after California —  but its production numbers are looking just as bad. According to…