Introduction to 2.6
Along with all of those goods and technologies, there are serious environmental consequences that accompany the networks of exchange (1200-1450). For the College Board, this means foods and diseases. They specifically site Bananas, Champa Rice (fast-growing rice that can grow two full crops per season, which was a tribute from Vietnam to Song China), and citrus fruits (which means lemons, sour oranges, and pomelos (since the Mediterranean already had other citrus fruits as evidenced by seeds at Pompeii et al). Another environmental consequence is disease. When the world connects, it creates highways for trade and the spreading of disease. Below are the environmental consequences of the Networks of Exchange.