{"id":333123,"date":"2024-06-16T10:09:14","date_gmt":"2024-06-16T08:09:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=333123"},"modified":"2024-06-16T10:09:16","modified_gmt":"2024-06-16T08:09:16","slug":"the-wall-street-journals-left-turn-on-climate-change-is-unjustified-the-finer-things-in-life-are-widely-available","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=333123","title":{"rendered":"The Wall Street Journal\u2019s Left Turn on Climate Change Is Unjustified, the \u2018Finer Things in Life\u2019 Are Widely Available"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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From ClimateRealism<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By H. Sterling Burnett<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published an article, titled \u201cClimate Change Is Coming for the Finer Things in Life<\/a>,\u201d claiming that by causing \u201cwonky weather,\u201d climate change is disrupting crop production for a variety of crops. This story is false on two counts: First, there is no evidence climate change is causing wonky weather or changing weather trends at all; second, the yields and production of each of the crops discussed in the story have grown dramatically during the recent period of modest warming regularly setting records. If anything, climate change has resulted in more grapes (and wine), olives (and olive oil), coffee, and cocoa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs the world warms, extreme weather is disrupting the production of some of life\u2019s great comforts\u2014wine, olive oil, coffee, and cocoa,\u201d Jon Emont writes for the WSJ. \u201cSome of these crops are concentrated in one or two regions, which means wonky weather in one part of the world can have a dizzying impact on global prices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Real-world data presented in Climate at a Glance<\/em>, show drought<\/a>, heatwaves<\/a>, floods<\/a>, tropical cyclones<\/a>, and wildfires<\/a>, or a variety of other extreme weather events or impacts have not become \u201cwonky.\u201d Such events are no more frequent, powerful, or unpredictable than they have been in the past. And, plants<\/a> and pollinators<\/a> are doing well. So, except for the normal ups and downs farmers have always experienced historically nothing strange is happening weather wise. Hundreds of post on Climate Realism<\/em> confirm that weather trends<\/a> have not worsened and crop growth<\/a> has increased, including for the crops and the regions discussed by the WSJ, such as Vietnam<\/a> and West Africa<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Concerning the crops discussed, agricultural production has always been more or less at the mercy of the weather. So olive production and associated olive oil might decline be down for a year or two, same with grapes and wine, coffee, and cocoa, but to make the case that climate change is causing a decline one must look at long-term trends, One or two year\u2019s weather does not proof of climate change<\/a> make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look at crop data to discern what trends exist, if any, something neither Emont nor WSJ did. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization maintains a database of global agricultural production and it shows that each of the crops and products discussed by Emont in his misguided WSJ post have repeatedly set new records for yield and production over the past thirty years of climate change. Between 1990 and 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, FAO data show, that olive production increased approximately 138 percent, and yields increased by about 61 percent. Over the same time period, olives set new production records 11 times, with the most recent record set in 2018, with the second highest production year coming in 2020. Olive yields set records eight times since 1990. Although not all olives are used to make olive oil, olive oil trends are similar. Between 1990 and 2021, the last year of FAO data<\/a>, olive oil production grew by a little over 124 percent. (See the graphic below)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As dozens of Climate Realism<\/em> posts have shown before, what\u2019s true of olives is true of grapes, cocoa<\/a>, and coffee<\/a> as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Concerning cocoa and coffee, since 1990:<\/p>\n\n\n\n