Drought in Europe forces innovation

Of the 96 departments into which

is divided , all but three were in a critical water situation this summer (July-August), after having experienced

, counting from the French revolution and, above all, from the first industrial revolution (1780 - 1840).

It is also estimated that the seriousness of this weather situation is that it has not only affected agri-food production but also households, industry, transport, and especially tourism, which is the main service activity of the French economy. .

This critical water situation is clearly part of a structural trend, because

In addition, it is a phenomenon of

, although its epicenter is clearly in France.

According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), French and European agricultural production in general uses 70% of the fresh water available and this represents a proportion similar to the world level.

It must be added that

;

and as European societies grow below the world average (+0.5% per year, or less), at the same time that it possesses an ample endowment of resources as well as abundant rainfall regimes throughout the continent, Europe has historically had a large water surplus .

This feature means that the brutal drought affecting European agricultural production has practically taken one of the world's leading agricultures by surprise, which in turn is one of the three most advanced in the global system.

It must be taken as a fact that

The European water crisis, caused by the combination of

.

It is clearly one of the most disruptive effects in one of the most advanced regions of climate change or “global warming”.

For this reason, among other reasons, the FAO estimates that

;

and in this appreciation the European continent is also included and in the first place.

The premise of this observation is that in the last 30 years, agri-food production in the world has increased by more than 100%;

and the Rome-based international body warns that

;

and this occurs while the availability of fresh water for agriculture would increase only 10% in the next three decades.

In short, the world, and Europe in the first place, is facing an inescapable situation of structural water crisis during this period.

This leaves the European continent no alternative but to innovate, which first and foremost requires discarding the old prejudices that are absolutely anachronistic at the present time, especially those referring to the use of genetically modified seeds (GMO), especially the new varieties specifically designed by its anti-drought effect (such as the recently patented) by Bioceres of Rosario, Argentina.

Europe in general, but especially France, is the hard core of agricultural protectionism in the world today.

Hence, its producers are extremely rigid, accustomed to high tariff barriers and high State subsidies.

That is why these farmers usually have little or no capacity to innovate.

Only 6% of the French producers have irrigation equipment

(which implies less than 15% of the productive units);

and until now the entire agri-food system depends on the action of the State, traditionally hyper-centralized according to the French Jacobin tradition.

Everything is steeped in history in France, and when it comes to agriculture it is a narrative of hypercentralization, statism, and bureaucracy.

The typical case of this situation is the French dairy industry: an organic farm of about 80 cows produces about 430,000 liters of milk per year and each animal drinks about 100 liters of water per day, and all this takes place in the growing conditions of a structural chronic drought.