News from a World in Flux Ep. 35: A food crisis is coming this year and the government is unprepared

Extinction Rebellion’s co-founder Clare Farrell and conservation scientist Dr Charlie Gardner team up once more to discuss issues and stories they feel are not getting enough airtime. They want to make sure that the latest news in science and important reports that are relevant to the climate and ecological crisis are flagged and explained in ways that are easy to understand.

EPISODE 35: A food crisis is coming this year and the government is unprepared

In this episode Clare and Charlie discuss how a perfect storm is brewing that will result in a coming food crisis this year and what you can do to prepare. They cover how the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is affecting fertilizer supplies and increasing fuel prices, while a developing El Niño weather event is going to exacerbate already difficult growing conditions. All this against a background of a fragile food system and an unprepared government means we need to organise to keep ourselves safe.
This isn't the final word in terms of things to think and do. It's really important to think about the near term impacts, but it's a huge topic and there is much more to cover in future episodes.

REFERENCES

Britain ‘sleepwalking into a food crisis’ without urgent action, experts say - The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/may/28/britain-sleepwalking-into-a-food-crisis-without-urgent-action-experts-say

Steve Keen – Things Fall Apart - Brave New Europe
https://braveneweurope.com/steve-keen-things-fall-apart

Industry body warns fuel crisis could leave crops rotting in UK fields - The Guardian
https://www.farminguk.com/news/industry-body-warns-fuel-crisis-could-leave-crops-rotting-in-uk-fields_68483.html 

'Unpredictable and extreme’: Asia braces for El Niño - The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jun/05/el-nino-asia-unpredictable-extreme-weather-climate-change-crisis

Pro-Social Hoarding - George Monbiot
https://www.monbiot.com/2025/03/20/pro-social-hoarding/

A food revolution: campaigners in Liège want all the region’s produce to be grown locally. Can they do it? - The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/jul/16/the-good-life-in-liege-the-start-of-a-food-revolution

Planting Value in the Food System - The Vegan Society
https://www.plantingvalueinfood.org/

Eating Away at Climate Change with Negative Emissions - Helen Harwatt and Matthew Hayek
https://animal.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/Eating-Away-at-Climate-Change-with-Negative-Emissions%E2%80%93%E2%80%93Harwatt-Hayek.pdf

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