Food scientist Sarah Gurr from the University of Exeter has warned that the real threat from fungi is not a zombie apocalypse but a global food crisis. In a study published in the journal Nature, Gurr and colleagues highlight how fungal infections are devastating staple crops such as wheat, rice, corn, soybeans and potatoes, which feed the world's 8 billion people.
The researchers note that farmers already lose between 10 and 23 percent of their crops to fungal infections each year, despite heavy use of fungicides. This loss equates to the food needed to feed between 600 million and 4 billion people for a year. The problem is worsening as climate change allows fungal pathogens to spread northwards at a rate of 7km per year, and as they develop resistance to existing chemicals.
Since 2015, the concentration of fungicide needed to fight the wheat fungus Zymoseptoria tritici has increased tenfold. Wheat stem rust, typically found in the tropics, has recently been reported in Ireland and England. The researchers call for urgent development of next-generation antifungals to counter the growing threat, which they describe as potentially catastrophic, particularly for poorer regions in Africa.
