Agriculture
The crops we produce in the UK and around the World could alter significantly with climate change. The weather is a vital part in farming and changes in temperature and precipitation will be important in sustaining crop growth.
For the UK, temperature rises look likely to mean the crops we would normally see growing in the south of the country will be able to be grown further north.
The types of crops grown in the UK will have to change, which doesn't have to be a bad thing. Products which haven't been farmed over here before, such as sweetcorn, sunflowers, soya and maize for cereals, could all provide new business for farmers - certainly in the south east. For land owners further north and west, such as in parts of Scotland, livestock farming could become more suitable to such climes.
It is estimated that 20-30% of plant and animal species will be an increased risk of extinction if the temperature rises by more than 1.5-2.5C.
Global food production could rise with a 1-3C temperature increase. This trend will reverse, with a bigger increase, and locally there will be serious negative effects caused by increased droughts and floods.
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