Anyone who cannot source crude for domestic refining cannot produce nitrogen fertilizers. This will be a problem nearly everywhere in the Eastern Hemisphere, but as with the broader energy question, the complications will be particularly intense in Korea, Central Europe, and the bulk of sub-Saharan Africa. The country that will certainly face the biggest declines in agriculture output will be China. Not only do the Chinese grow pretty much everything at scale, but Chinese soil and water quality is so low that Chinese farmers generally use more fertilizer per calorie produced than any other
...more
