Thanks to climate change, chocolate to get extinct by 2040
Imagine a world without chocolates. Well, you will not have to imagine for long, as it will become a reality in the next 22 years. Yes, you read it right. Experts claim that chocolate is fast disappearing from the world, thanks to climate change. Cacao trees need heavy rain for growth. With climates getting warmer, they are struggling to grow. Read on for more.
We will soon face annual chocolate deficit of 100,000 tons
Cacao trees need specific weather conditions (high humidity, abundant rain) for cultivation and grow only 20° north/south of the equator. A temperature-rise of 2.1°C, and cacao trees will forever disappear from earth, claims US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Considering the ever-growing demand for chocolate and the dying supply, scientists predict that we will soon face an annual chocolate deficit of 100,000 tons.
Chocolate in 2040 will come at high environmental cost
The rising temperature and subsequent moisture loss in soil will force cacao production uphill into mountainous terrain, a region preserved for wildlife. In 2050, a bar of chocolate will therefore come at high environmental cost, that of ruining dying ecosystems.
Inadequate farming methods affecting chocolate production
Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana produce over 50% of the world's chocolate. It takes 10 cacao trees to make the cocoa and the butter for 286 chocolate bars, which is a typical Westerner's average annual consumption. Other than climate change, cocoa production is also under strain because of ancient, obsolete, inadequate farming methods that have not changed in hundreds of years.
