"The world’s population is expected to reach 9.8 billion in 2050. Meanwhile, concurrent rises in
incomes and urbanization are driving increased consumption of meat, dairy, and biofuels.
Meeting the demand for food, feed, and biofuel will require a global production increase of almost
50 percent relative to 2012. Production in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa—where 95 percent
of farms are smaller than five hectares—must double at a minimum.
A key element of policies to increase food production will be promoting improved food quality,
as the health costs of too much, too little, and the wrong types of food become increasingly
evident. Additional initiatives must address how to reduce food losses; globally, one-third of food
production is lost or wasted at different stages in the food chain each year. Climate change is
bringing further stressors.
These challenges also present opportunities. Around the world, 450 million smallholder farmers
are plagued by low productivity and poor access to inputs, technology,
