Digest Number 1282

> In fact, agriculture in Europe is ABSURDLY INEFFICIENT and only
survives due to massive subsides. Agriculture in developing countries
is far more competitive in the sense that it produces more consuming
less.

Not quite...Europe is inefficient in its current *structure* that is
subsidised (ie loads of small farmers), and the 3rd world is competitive
largely because wages are so low, despite inefficient agriculture. The
reason so many of them are large primary producers is that they grow cash
crops, its their major revenue source..as they industrialise they will
diversify too.

> Therefore, I would think some developed countries like the European
ones to be *more* vulnerable to agricultural breakdown due to problems
in energy supply.

Not really...a lot of Europe is very fertile, always has been, and due to
settlement structure farms are still close to markets in many cases - plus
economies are more mixed. In 3rd world a move away from industrial
agribusiness will mean no money...devastating their weak economies in short
term.

The UK was a much larger importer of food pre WW2, but that experience made
it decide strategically to never again be in a position that it cannot feed
itself - a lesson Japan may do well to learn in the coming century.....