Beer Prices May Increase Dramatically Soon Because Of Global Warming

According to a new study by Nature Plants, severe weather conditions will cause a disruption to the supply of barley crops since they are sensitive to drought and heat. 

Barley yields could see a decline between 3% and 17% under climate change, as reported by CNN.

According to Business Insider, the rising global temperatures could affect the production of barley.

The weather conditions in the next few years could see about a 16% decrease in global beer consumption, equivalent to 29 billion litres.

The shortage of beer could lead to a new kind of social instability and prohibition in which beer becomes a luxury good that's more expensive but less available, especially for the working class.

"Really, the countries who love beer will suffer a lot," said the co-author of the study and a climate change economics professor Dabo Guan.

Oldways Whole Grains Council program director Caroline Sluyter said that barley is less important compared to crops like rice, corn, and wheat that have seen reductions in the past.

"Those three make up about 50% of the world's calories, so they're huge in people's diets," she added.

It is reported that only about a sixth of the world's harvested barley are used for beer and the rest are fed to livestock. 

"We have to all work together to mitigate climate change," Guan said, adding that the study is trying to show how climate change will impact your quality of life.