Description

Terri Raney, Chief Editor, The State of Food and Agriculture Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations World population is predicted to reach 9 billion by mid-century while natural resource degradation and climate change pose unrelenting threats to agriculture in many parts of the world. Already, perhaps half the world's population consumes diets that are nutritionally inadequate: nearly a billion people remain chronically undernourished, an equal number are overweight or obese, and several billion suffer from severe vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Feeding 9 billion people sustainably requires dramatic innovation in science and technology, but science and technology are not enough. Social and economic barriers often prevent farmers from using the simplest advances in science and technology, and cutting-edge advances face even higher barriers. Overcoming social and economic barriers to innovation in agriculture is the key to achieving sustainable poverty reduction and healthy diets for everyone. This lecture will be preceded by light refreshments of Arabic Coffee & Dates from the Kingdom. Dates supplied by Talah and Wahat Albadia.