CO2 has recently become very scarce globally, causing alarm within several industries. It is known CO2 has its uses in carbonating drinks, preserving foods, and to keep foods fresh through transportation, however with limitations of its use we see many industries, particularly livestock, have significant impacts. A shortage of CO2 in the livestock industry means that butchered meat cannot be processed and packaged, leading to many farmers having to kill their cattle before any can be sold. Why are we seeing this shortage? CO2 is by-product of fertilizer and CF Industries, a leading producer of this resource, has stopped work in two main facilities from the increase in wholesale gas prices. Although this will cause current CO2 prices to drastically increase, Environment Secretary George Eustice states that this increase won’t have a “significant impact” on the price of food items.
Later that week, BBC has followed up stating, “CF Industries, a key CO2 producer in the UK has agreed to continue supplies of the gas.” To compensate for the increased costs CF Industries will have, firms will have to pay more for the CO2 purchased. Due to the rising wholesale gas costs, CF closed its two sites that make up 60% of the UK’s CO2. This however, is not sustainable since one of those two sites are entirely government funded and the cost of the gas has only increased since the beginning and has been predicted by Eustice to rise from 200 pounds per ton to 1000 pounds per ton.
Western Illinois University School of Agriculture 