Global Warming Creates Problems For Our Food Supply
It is bad enough that we have to worry about mosquito borne diseases like dengue fever or zika, or brain parasites , we now have to worry about fungus on our food like mycotoxins . As described by Thinkprogress.org , Now, we can add one more terrible thing to that growing list: climate change could actually make important crops toxic to animals and humans. That’s the conclusion of a new report released this week by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), which warns that warming temperatures could cause crops to accumulate mycotoxins — poisons produced by fungi that can lead to cancer and death — at higher rates. Mycotoxins are already found in crops like wheat, maize, and barley — a 1998 estimate suggested that mycotoxins exist in at least 25 percent of cereal grains worldwide. They’re the toxins that come from mold, and a big reason why we avoid food that’s gone bad. Mycotoxins mainly occur in tropical areas, where warm temperatures encourage fungal growth. A...