Situation: Virodia has been barely self-sufficient in both meat and grain. Recently per capita meat consumption in Virodia has been increasing. Recent increases in per capita income will probably continue, but production of grain will probably not increase. It takes several pounds of grain to produce each pound of meat.
Reasoning:What claim is most strongly supported by the given information? We are told that producing a pound
of meat requires several pounds of grain.
If (1) more meat is going to be consumed in Virodia,(2)more grain will not be produced, and (3) there is no excess grain, then Virodia will have to import meat, or import grain so it can produce more meat, or both.
A)The information given says nothing about pastureland for grazing cattle, and it provides no evidence that meat producers would be able to produce more meat per area of land by using the land for pasture than by using it for grain production. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the meat in Virodia is produced from cattle rather than from some other types of animals that are fed on grain. Given that the information suggests that there may be an increase in demand for grain, it seems unlikely that there will be a reduction in the amount of land used to produce grain.
B)The information says that per capita income is likely to increase and that greater prosperity correlates positively with greater meat consumption. It provides no reason to think that the correlation between rising income and increasing meat consumption occurs only with more rapid rises in income.
C)Nothing in the information given provides any evidence as to whether the amount of grain needed to produce a pound of meat will change.
D)The information indicates that per capita meat consumption is likely to continue to increase, which actually supports the opposite of what this answer choice states.
