Expert meeting report

 

In the first half of this century, global demand for food, feed and fibre is projected to increase by some 70 percent, while crops may increasingly be used for bioenergy and other industrial purposes. New and traditional demand for agricultural produce will thus put growing pressure on already scarce agricultural resources. And while agriculture will be forced to compete for land and water with sprawling urban settlements, it will also be required to serve on other major fronts: adapting to and contributing to the mitigation of climate change, helping preserve natural habitats, and maintaining biodiversity. At the same time, fewer people will be living in rural areas and even fewer will be farmers. They will need new technologies to grow more from less land, with fewer hands.

To consider these and associated questions, FAO convened a three-day meeting of Experts in Rome under the Chairmanship of Hartwig de Haen, former Assistant Director-General with responsibility for the Economic and Social Development Department. 17 papers were commissioned from a broad range of experts and were presented by the authors. A further three presentations were made without supporting papers. Rich discussion followed each presentation.

Click here to download the report of the FAO Expert Meeting on How to Feed the World in 2050 (pdf)

The path to the Summit

Three important events have prepared the ground for the Summit:

The High-Level Expert Forum on How to Feed the World in 2050 examined policy options that governments should consider adopting to ensure that the world population can be fed when it nears its peak of nearly 9.2 billion people in the middle of this century.

The Committee on World Food Security considered reforms that will enable it to play a much more effective role in the global governance of food security.

The theme of World Food Day this year is how to ensure food security in times of crisis.