And now there’s climate change, which in recent years has made for higher temperatures and increasingly erratic weather patterns.

As a rising population and erratic weather push the system to its limits, the prices of wheat, sugar and cotton have hit new highs.

After rain yesterday, below, spectators should prepare for erratic weather over the next few days, with bursts of sunshine giving way to showers through to the weekend.

Such erratic weather often comes from the path of the jet stream, a ribbon of fast winds that circles the globe.

Kiln drying provides a means of overcoming the limitations imposed by erratic weather conditions.