BY MARK DICKSTEIN, LONDON, March 8, 2020 6:22:16 This article first appeared on the Breitbart London website and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
China has achieved the second largest market share of all the world’s major economies by 2020 and has overtaken the US as the world leader in grocery store spending, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The report released this week said the rise in Chinese grocery spending is “a consequence of the global food security crisis” and the rise of China’s economic and social reforms.
The FAO said China has now surpassed the US in terms of the amount of food imports and spent $14.5 trillion on food, more than double the $9.4 trillion spent by the US.
In terms of food production, China has overtook the US to become the world largest exporter of rice.
As well as becoming the largest exporters of rice, China is also the world´s biggest consumer of milk, which accounts for $5.3 trillion of China´s food imports, a new record, and more than triple the amount spent on food by the United States, according the report.
The FAOS report noted that the United Kingdom and Germany are the two largest consumers of meat, accounting for about a third of total global meat consumption, while India, Brazil, and China are the three largest producers of eggs.
The report also found that China’s population of over 7.5 billion is growing, as is its consumption of goods made of meat.
According to the FAO, the increase in China´ s population has been accompanied by an increase in the use of “natural resources”.
China has already overtaken Brazil in terms (grocery) consumption by 2020.
At the same time, China, which now accounts for more than 50% of global grocery stores, has overtaked the US and the UK as the biggest consumer market for raw materials.
The food security report, which was issued last week, said the increase was driven by “the rapid pace of technological advances in processing, packaging, packaging technologies, packaging materials, and food safety”.
“We are witnessing an unprecedented transformation in the world of food consumption, in which food security is becoming a global issue,” the FAOs report said.
Its authors, from the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nation (FAOSTAT), said the rising levels of consumption in China were also a result of its rapid economic development.
“Over the past two decades, China’s agricultural sector has grown to over 9.6% of the world economy, and its consumption has been more than doubled,” the report said, adding that the number of people in China who earn less than $10,000 a year has increased by more than a third.
By 2020, China will have overtaken Australia as the largest food-importing country, overtaking France and Germany, it added.
More:China’s food consumption is projected to surpass the US by the end of this decade, overtook Germany by 2020, overtaken Germany by 2021 and overtaken Japan by 2031, accordingto the FAOSTAT report.
It also noted that “the consumption of natural resources is increasing, with the growing demand for fertilisers and pesticides, and the potential for food to be exported.”
The increasing global demand for food, the increasing reliance on natural resources, and on the world-wide adoption of global food sovereignty and global food sharing, all contribute to the increasing economic power of China and the rapid growth of its economy.
“The report said that “China’s economic growth and growth in consumption are largely driven by rapid technological innovations, which have been adopted by the Chinese economy as an extension of its food production model.
“”The growth in the consumption of raw materials is partly driven by China´ development of an innovative manufacturing model, which uses innovative materials and processes to manufacture goods, which has been adopted globally,” it added, noting that China´ new manufacturing model was “the most significant and innovative economic development since the advent of modern technology.
“More than 80% of Chinese consumers now use “natural products” to eat, the report found.
There is now a greater demand for meat and milk than ever before, with a quarter of the population in China consuming at least some meat, the FAOS said.
China is the worlds largest consumer of fresh fruit and vegetables, with nearly 50% buying fruits and vegetables.
This report said the United Sates’ share of the market for imported vegetables is now almost half of the US, which imports most of its fresh fruit, and that a “significant portion of the domestic supply is consumed by Chinese consumers.”
However, the US has been “overwhelmingly” leading the way in the global market for meat, with imports up to 40% of