Dude, didn't you know that today you weren't supposed to comment anything? I'm a moderator of the contest, however, and so I am allowed to comment. Please no more
Point one: Don't trust data from FAO, on this quiz or any other. The agency passively accepts and reports whatever BS member states provide. Point two: As in so many other quizzes, this would be far more relevant if done per capita, not by country, which are for the most part randomly determined units of geography.
I'm sure certain countries report inaccurate info. Venezuela and Argentina are likely offenders. But unless there are better sources, this is a good start. Government data from many countries is often quite accurate.
Yes, "certain countries" report inaccurate data, unfortunately most often those of greatest concern to the issue of food security. I've been reviewing FAO data on this subject for years, and in many cases I think we would be better off simply knowing that we don't know. No, this is not a "good start."
That's what I was thinking. What could they possibly need that they couldn't produce or find a substitute for? Bad grammar, I know. They running short of vodka or caviar?
Yeah. I first thought it would mostly be desert countries so I tried most of the Middle East, but that didn't get me that far. I then just starting typing really large, populous countries thinking maybe extra food was needed to support larger populations.
China though? Even with a large population to feed, they have tons of land for agriculture. What about Japan?
Also, I know Bangladesh/Vietnam/Philippines are developing and might not be entirely self-sufficient, but it was still a surprise seeing them, since they have tons of productive land for agriculture.
On that note, why isn't India here? It's enormous like China and developing like many of the countries here, so why does it not import nearly as much food as some of the other countries here?
As for the developed Western nations like the UK and Germany, I have no idea where even to begin...
I think even though China has a ton of land territory, not all of it is arable (such as the regions of Tibet, etc.), so it still needs to import at least some food for its population. The same thing goes for Japan, where inland it gets mountainous and the soil isn't that suitable for farming. The same things go for Bangladesh, Vietnam, and the Philippines, although the reason there is because they have smaller amounts of land and have large populations. India also has the most farmland of any country on Earth, so it makes sense how it wouldn't be on here. I don't necessarily know about the reason for the European countries though. (I'm sorry about this lol)
That makes some sense for China, but I'm still skeptical that that's the sole reason. The agriculture-poor regions of Western China are also the most sparsely populated places in China, so less food would be required in those regions. It makes sense that they have to import food, but $83 million worth?
As for India, it's true that they have more farmland than most countries (it's actually #2 I think, with America #1), but only slightly more than China. Also, there are some rather arid and soil-poor regions in India, like Rajasthan, and even with all of their farming, malnutrition is a major problem. It seems odd to me that they wouldn't need at least *some* extra food from abroad, especially considering it fits the trends of many other countries here.
Not saying you're wrong on any of this (what you said Japan/Bangladesh/Vietnam/Philippines makes sense), it just still seems odd to me.
That's a good point that I wasn't really thinking of though. Looking at it per capita, Saudi Arabia and Iraq would be much higher than China/Vietnam/Bangladesh/the Philippines.
i seem to be the only one surprised the uk is on here, let alone so high on the list. all you see when driving from town to town is farmland and fields
seems to be mostly either highly desert regions, highly arctic regions, or islands as the vast majority, which does make a good bit of sense. I have a feeling the top spot is the top spot thanks to its enormous size, which tends to get it put on all of these sorts of quizzes
China though? Even with a large population to feed, they have tons of land for agriculture. What about Japan?
Also, I know Bangladesh/Vietnam/Philippines are developing and might not be entirely self-sufficient, but it was still a surprise seeing them, since they have tons of productive land for agriculture.
On that note, why isn't India here? It's enormous like China and developing like many of the countries here, so why does it not import nearly as much food as some of the other countries here?
As for the developed Western nations like the UK and Germany, I have no idea where even to begin...
As for India, it's true that they have more farmland than most countries (it's actually #2 I think, with America #1), but only slightly more than China. Also, there are some rather arid and soil-poor regions in India, like Rajasthan, and even with all of their farming, malnutrition is a major problem. It seems odd to me that they wouldn't need at least *some* extra food from abroad, especially considering it fits the trends of many other countries here.
Not saying you're wrong on any of this (what you said Japan/Bangladesh/Vietnam/Philippines makes sense), it just still seems odd to me.
That's a good point that I wasn't really thinking of though. Looking at it per capita, Saudi Arabia and Iraq would be much higher than China/Vietnam/Bangladesh/the Philippines.