Energy and Oil (Brown, 34-42) |
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Food and agriculture is Brown's forte. |
He has become an authority on the relationship between agronomy and energy. He grasps the Big Picture, but does not fall into economism. He puts ecology and physical realities first. This is an important section of the book. |
Energy as an factor of agricultural production |
Food takes energy and fertilizer to produce, which require petroleum products. Industrial agriculture takes much fossil fuel--and free solar energy as well. However, agriculture is getting more energy-efficient. |
India and China loom large |
These Asian giants demand great quantities of food and energy. They are driving up global demand. India and especially China play important roles throughout this book. |
As oil prices rise, food miles may drop -- a shift toward the local. |
Brown is onto something here. He is trying to get ahead of a trend. Will he be right? This is speculative but significant. Watch it. |
The trade-off between grain and oil |
Brown specifically calculates the trade-off between grain and oil. See the table on page 68. Notice that his analysis matches physical commodities, not price. This plays off USA and Saudi Arabia, a complicated arrangement. Read page 30 closely. It is important. |
Food and fuel compete for land: fuel wins |
A major theme that Brown has championed -- and he is right. See 38-42. Read this closely. |