Influenced by the French farm plan, British experts and scholars also advocated "food self-sufficiency strategy" and suggested that the government open up a granary that belonged to Britannia in the overseas colonies.
Unlike the French, the British had a lot of choices. With the advantage of the Royal Navy, Britannia did not have to worry about food.
Whether it was the United Nations in North America, or Argentina and Brazil in South America, they were all granaries for Britannia.
Even the newly developed areas such as New Zealand, Australia, and Canada also had the potential to become granaries for the Empire.
If they really couldn't do it, they could just squeeze some people from India.
Anyway, the population of the British Isles was so small, and the mainland could self-supply 70% of the food. The problem of feeding the remaining millions of people was not a problem for John Bull.
No matter how high the food security of Britannia was, it did not prevent the experts and scholars from bragging. As long as the money was in place, there was nothing that could not be done.
For the sake of the pound, the experts quickly listed a lot of reasons. Even the Great Irish Famine, which was shameful to be mentioned, was brought up as a reason.
The government did not respond, but the people first panicked. Some unscrupulous capitalists spread rumors that Russia and Austria were suffering from a drought, and the autumn harvest for the second half of the year was a failure.
Such an absurd rumor, but there were people who believed it, and it was not just one or two. Because the price of food had really risen.
As a lawyer, Bill was much more knowledgeable than ordinary people. He was not affected by the rumor and rushed to buy food.
"Sir, recently there has been a crazy rumor that Eastern Europe suffered a drought, and Russia and Austria had a failure this year. The price of food in London has already risen slightly.
In order to reduce expenses, I suggest you stock up on a batch of food. If you have enough money, you can stock up more and wait for the price to rise before selling. "
The housekeeper's reminder did not shake Bill's judgment. What kind of drought could make Russia and Austria have a failure of grain?
It was only June, and the grain had not been planted for a long time. There was still a long time before the autumn harvest.
Even if there was no rain in the first half of the year, as long as there was enough rain later, most of the crops could still be preserved.
If the Russo-Austrian Alliance and Austria had a failure of grain, the international price of food would have gone through the roof.
A small increase?
If it did not increase by three or five times, it would be against the conscience of the capitalists.
Bill smiled and said, "These are all rumors. Only ignorant fools will believe them. Without Russia and Austria's grain, the international grain market would be paralyzed.
Without Russia and Austria's grain, the international grain market would be paralyzed. Even the most sensitive futures market did not react. What is there to worry about? "
This was the truth. The futures market was indeed the most sensitive. On the contrary, if there were any signs of a decline in grain production capacity, the market would not stop.
"Russia and Austria would not have a failure. I also think it is impossible for Russia and Austria to have a crop failure, but it may be true that they have suffered a drought.
Just yesterday, the London Daily had reprinted a copy of the Austrian Ministry of Agriculture's drought plan. If it wasn't for the drought, such a plan wouldn't have come up.
If there were, there, there would not, the would would would would would Is Austria. The futures market didn't react in time, so it's very likely that the banker hid the news. "
After listening to the butler's explanation, Bill immediately believed some of it. After Trader, Bill, he, Bill, Bob, the Family of the Annia, London, Bill.
After hesitating for a moment, Bill made a decision. "Then let's go buy a batch of grain first. However, we don't have to go to the grain store to buy it. I will contact the wholesaler directly.
After a moment of hesitation, Bill made a decision. "Then let's buy a batch of grain first, but we don't have to go to the grain store. I will contact the wholesalers directly."
In the spirit of "it's better to believe it's true than not", there were many people who made similar decisions.
Food was a necessity. Even if the price did not rise in the future, it was better to save it for later.
It was better than not being prepared and rushing to buy food when the price of food skyrocketed.
Due to the impact of the panic buying trend, the price of food in London kept rising. Affected by this price increase, more and more people joined the queue to buy food.
In the Prime Minister's official residence on Downing Street, the growing food rush made Prime Minister Gladstone restless.
Food was the most important thing for the people. This was common throughout the ages.
Just a rumor could make food prices rise in the United Kingdom. This was enough to prove that Britannia's food security was not so stable.
Gladstone, "Recently, the people have been advocating food self-sufficiency, and domestic food prices have continued to rise. What do you think?"
What do you think?
Everyone present knew that it was nothing more than the French's farm plan. A group of people who wanted to profit from it manipulated public opinion behind the scenes and artificially created panic.
Minister of Agriculture, Diez Bareilles, said, "The government has arranged to refute the rumor, but it has had little effect for the time being. After a while, the domestic food prices will stabilize.
From this fluctuation, it also proves that our food security is too affected by external factors. It is not as stable as we thought.
Fortunately, this is just a rumor. If Russia and Austria really suffered a drought, the consequences would be serious.
From a security point of view, the French food self-sufficiency plan is worth emulating. "
Regardless of whether they could make money or not, once the agricultural self-sufficiency plan was launched, the Ministry of Agriculture's voice in the government would greatly increase.
As one of those with a vested interest, Diez Barreus could not possibly object.
Minister of Finance, George Childers, warned, "We are different from the French. The strategic plan that works in France may not work in Britannia.
The French are not in the free trade system. They have a food self-sufficiency plan and can rely on tariff barriers to protect them. This investment is still guaranteed.
Judging from the current situation, it is inevitable that international food prices will fall, and the future market competition will be very fierce.
If we follow the trend, we will have to compete directly with the world's major grain-producing countries. Maybe we won't even be able to sell our food at the cost price.
From an economic point of view, this is an investment that is destined to lose money. The domestic market turbulence is only temporary, and it will recover soon.
There are too many places in Britannia that can import food. With the Royal Navy, there is no need to worry about being blockaded. "
While enjoying the benefits of the free trade system, Britannia must also be subject to the free trade system.
In normal times, there was nothing bad about it. Anyway, Britannia imported industrial raw materials and food. There was no need for tariff barriers at all for these necessities.
It was impossible to achieve food self-sufficiency. This required direct competition with major grain-producing countries, or rather, a price war.
It was obvious that the production cost of growing food in the colonies would be higher than that of other grain-exporting countries.
At most, they would gain the reputation of food self-sufficiency at a loss. In reality, it did not have much effect on the growth of the British Empire's national strength.
Foreign Secretary George retorted, "Economically, we may lose money, but politically, it's different.
Judging from the performance of the French, they are gradually losing the strength to balance Austria, and the balance of Europe is being broken.
The French's agricultural plan seems to be only to ensure their own food security, but it is also a revenge action against Austria.
If we follow suit, the international grain market will shrink by half directly. Affected by this, countries that rely on food exports will be hit hard.
As the world's largest agricultural exporter, Austria will bear the brunt, which will help balance the strength of the Fao. "
Whoever was strong would be suppressed. This was the unchanging foreign policy of the Government of the United Kingdom for hundreds of years. Now it was Austria's turn.
The more issues considered, the more difficult it was for Prime Minister Gladstone to make a decision. This was not just a matter of money, but it also involved the political changes of the Government of the United Kingdom in Europe.
After hesitating for a while, Gladstone asked, "What about the reaction of the Russians? Has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs considered it?"
This was not a matter of suppressing one country, but two countries at the same time. Russia and Austria were an invincible combination on the World Island.
If they were forced into a corner, they would use the war to divert the crisis and go straight to India. That would be a big problem.
Foreign Minister George shook his head. "The Russo-Austrian Alliance has lasted for three generations. For nearly a hundred years, the interests of the two countries have long been intertwined.
In order to break up this alliance, we have also made a lot of efforts, but now the two countries are still standing together.
The House of Habsburg's diplomatic means can be seen by flipping through history books. Franz is the best of the past monarchs, and it is unrealistic to want to isolate Austria.
The Russo-Austrian Alliance can't be broken up for a while. From the beginning of Russia's expansion into Central Asia, they have already been our enemy.
Maybe after the international food market shrinks, in order to compete for the market, Russia and Austria will go their separate ways because of interests.
Even if this alliance becomes more solid, the situation will not be much worse than it is now. "
Threaten India?
If they don't take action, Russia and Austria won't threaten India? Anyway, in George's opinion, the powerful countries close to India were hidden dangers.
There was no other way, the sense of crisis of a maritime civilization was so strong. Instead of facing the powerful Russia and Austria, it was better to face the weakened Russia and Austria.
As long as Austria, the financial backer, had no money, the poor Russians could not afford to make waves. As for Austria, wasn't there still the French holding them back?
Although the economy of France was not good, there was no doubt about the combat effectiveness of the French army.
If it weren't for such a big boss, the British would have been unable to sleep. The current Austria was much more powerful than the German and German empires of the same period in history.
After hesitating for a while, Gladstone, who was politically astute, decided to kick the ball.
"The agricultural self-sufficiency plan involves tens of millions of pounds of investment. It is still too rash for us to make a decision.
The Ministry of Agriculture will prepare a plan and submit it to the parliament for deliberation. Let's listen to the MPs' opinions first. "
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