GCSE Biology Revision "Food Security" (Triple)

Summary

This video focuses on biological factors affecting food security, aimed at triple biology students. It highlights six main threats: rising birth rates, changing food demands, pests and pathogens, environmental changes, resource-intensive farming, and conflicts. These factors impact the global food supply, with issues such as unpredictable weather, pests damaging crops, and expensive farming resources threatening food security. The video emphasizes the importance of finding sustainable methods to ensure long-term food security as the global population grows.

Takeaways

• 🌍 The current global population is around 7.5 billion people, all of whom need food.
• 🍽️ Food security means having enough food to feed a population, and it is becoming more crucial as fewer people grow their own food.
• 👶 In some countries, birth rates are increasing, meaning food supply must also increase to feed the growing population.
• 🍓 Changing tastes in developed countries, such as the UK, require importing a variety of foods, which can impact the food security of the exporting countries.
• 🐛 New pests, like caterpillars, and pathogens that cause infectious diseases threaten food crops, reducing available food supplies.
• 🌦️ Environmental changes, such as unpredictable weather due to global warming, can impact crop growth and lead to food shortages.
• 🚜 Modern farming requires many resources like fertilizers and pesticides, which could become more expensive as the global population increases, threatening food security.
• 🐄 Livestock farming is also affected as the cost of animal feed may increase, putting pressure on food production systems.
• ⚔️ Conflicts and wars can disrupt farming, prevent food imports, and threaten access to water, further jeopardizing food security.
• 🌱 Sustainable methods are essential to feeding the growing population and ensuring long-term food security for everyone on Earth.

Q & A

What is food security?

Food security is having enough food to feed a population.

Why is food security becoming more important?

Food security is becoming more important as more people live in cities, fewer people grow their own food, and the global population continues to grow.

What are the biological threats to food security mentioned in the script?

The six biological threats to food security mentioned are increasing birth rates, changing food tastes, pests, pathogens, environmental changes, and conflicts.

How does an increasing birth rate affect food security?

As the population grows, the amount of food available must increase to meet the needs of the entire population.

How do changing tastes in developed countries like the UK affect food security?

In countries like the UK, people expect to eat a wide variety of foods year-round, many of which cannot be grown locally. This leads to reliance on imported food, which can threaten food security in other countries.

What role do pests and pathogens play in threatening food security?

Pests, such as caterpillars, consume food crops, while pathogens cause infectious diseases in crops. Both reduce the amount of food available to eat.

How might environmental changes, such as global warming, impact food security?

Environmental changes like global warming could lead to unpredictable weather patterns, such as altered rainfall, which could make it difficult for countries to grow enough food, potentially leading to famine.

Why are modern farming methods considered a threat to food security?

Modern farming methods require significant resources, such as fertilizers and pesticides. As the global population increases, these resources may become more expensive and unaffordable in certain countries, threatening food security.

How do conflicts and wars affect food security?

During conflicts, farming can be disrupted, and imports of food may become impossible. Additionally, wars can threaten the reliable supply of water, further impacting food production.

What is a potential solution to the increasing threat to food security as the global population grows?

A potential solution is to find sustainable methods of food production, which would help ensure long-term food security as the world's population increases.