Touch the Soil News #2064 (photo – Growing Crops – Public Domain, USDA)
The International Grains Council reports on carryover grain stocks from year to year. Carryover is that inventory of grain on hand before new crop comes in. For the grain year 2016/2017 grain stocks ended at 662.9 million metric tonnes. A metric tonne is 2,205 lbs. When we calculate that out in pounds per person, it comes to 192 lbs.
Fast forward to the 2024/2025 crop year, estimates are that carryover grain stocks will be 580.2 million metric tonnes. When we calculate that out in pounds per person it comes to 158 lbs.
Using this measure of 192 lbs. per person in 2017 to 156 lbs. per person in 2025, we can calculate carryover stocks have deteriorated by 19 percent. What do you think? Are people overall feeling more food insecure? Are you feeling you should get involved in some type of food production?
