A report recently released by the UK government, “The Future of Food and Farming: Challenges and choices for global sustainability,” provides a detailed look at how to feed a growing global population in a healthy and sustainable way.
One of the major challenges highlighted in the report is ending hunger. The report’s authors stress the importance of making agriculture work harder for reducing hunger and of implementing measures that impact the entire food system. As we face a world where one billion people suffer from hidden hunger and another one billion overeat, it is clear that we need to make some major changes to the current system.
Among the recommendations is the need to embed “direct nutrition components within larger resource flows,” particularly in existing agriculture programs. This includes biofortification of staple crops with nutrients, which they deem to be a “promising innovation.”
Additional recommendations include minimizing waste in all areas of the food system, balancing future demand and supply in the food system, and improving governance of the global food system.
The challenges identified in the report show an urgent need to link food and agriculture policy to wider global governance agendas such as climate change mitigation, biodiversity, and international development.
The report follows a two-year study by the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs and the Department for International Development with the involvement of over 400 experts from 35 countries.
Also check out this article from WorldandMedia.com.