Re:The world is facing a coffee deficit
by Retric on Wednesday March 24, 2021 @07:34PM
(#26574496)
Demand is price dependent, if the supply drops by say 10% the prices rise aka price X = Supply Y. But, the other way of looking at this if you’re lowering the price below X you need a supply larger than Y.
Sure, economies get used to lower prices. However the excess annual food supply is plenty should some country have a 50% drop in agricultural output you don’t end up with famine just noticeably higher prices. That’s the slack inherent in very low prices and it extends to everything from industrial steel to phosphorus.
Re:The world is facing a coffee deficit
by dv_dt on Thursday March 25, 2021 @01:09AM
(#26576786)
At stable equilibriums maybe you can follow the curve up and down, but if the system has maximized profit then the equilibrium isn’t stable against variation - especially as climate change increases variations.
Sure, economies get used to lower prices. However the excess annual food supply is plenty should some country have a 50% drop in agricultural output you don’t end up with famine just noticeably higher prices. That’s the slack inherent in very low prices and it extends to everything from industrial steel to phosphorus.