Factors contributing to the declines or plateaus in food production rates include land and soil degradation, climate change and cyclical weather patterns, use of fertilisers and pesticides, and inadequate or inappropriate investment. The new research raises critical questions about the capacity of traditional industrial agricultural methods to sustain global food production for a growing world population. Food production will need to increase by about 60% by 2050 to meet demand. A report out this month from the Dutch bank Rabobank recommends cutting food waste by 10%, as over 1 billion tonnes - half of which is related to agriculture - ends up being wasted. More efficient use of water is necessary, the report says, such as micro-irrigation, to address a potential water supply deficit of 40% by 2030. Currently, agriculture accounts for 70% of global water demand. The report also calls for a reduction in dependence on fertilisers using input optimisation methods designed to reduce the amount of energy and water required. As 53% of fertiliser nutrients remain in the ground post-harvest, fertilisers contribute to soil degradation over time due to groundwater contamination, leaching, erosion and global warming. The Rabobank obsession with focusing on improvement of existing industrial methods - without quite grasping the scale of the problems facing industrial agriculture - is, however, a serious deficiency. Two years ago, a landmark report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the **Right to Food *** demonstrated that agroecology based on sustainable, small-scale, organic methods could potentially double food production in entire regions facing persistent hunger, over five to 10 years. weedsnetwork/traction/permalink/WeedsNews4756
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 05:52:19 +0000
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