Feeding People With Science

NickOttens

Interesting article in Der Spiegel (in English):

By 2050, the world will require nearly twice as much food as today. But producing it without consuming any extra resources -- so as not to exacerbate climate change -- will be tricky. Three scientists explain how this agricultural feat may be possible.

If the progress of the last 60 years had to be depicted in only four figures, this is what they would be: In 1960, global agriculture produced an average of 200 kilograms (around 400 pounds) of grain for each person on the planet. Today, it has risen to 400 kilograms. At the same time, the global population has risen from 3 to 7 billion.

These statistics reveal a miracle of sorts: Though the number of people on the planet has doubled in the past six decades, the amount of food per capita has also increased. The percentage of people around the world who are currently suffering from hunger, 11 percent, marks a record low. Never before in the history of humankind has our collective abundance been so high.

Thousands of scientists across the planet are working to turn the extraordinary into reality. They are pursuing new ideas and methods to conquer hunger once and for all in the 21st century.

Click here to read the rest.

SteveK8

Excellent article, thanks. I particularly appreciate the research on "an old strain of corn that has perfected self-fertilization". Just knowing it exists gives a reason for hope.

Imagine traveling the galaxy in search of new types of food plants to bring back to Earth. It would be a stroke of great good fortune to come upon this strain of corn with aerial roots that produce a goo to feed a symbiotic bacteria. It even looks rather alien. ;-)