GTFS: Global Trends and Future Scenarios Index

Looking Ahead in World Food and Agriculture: Perspectives to 2050

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Introduction Excerpt

The last few years have witnessed a revamping of the debate on the relations among agriculture, natural resources, population growth and economic development. Various events, taking place within a short time span, have driven such renewed interest. Weather variability has seemed to accelerate, deeply affecting agricultural production around the world. Food and energy prices have shown large swings, while the biofuel industry has been expanding rapidly in some countries. Financial investment in agricultural commodity-based derivatives has grown at a fast pace, while large international investments in land, especially targeting developing countries, have gained the newspaper headlines.

[This] volume proposes a selection of revised and updated results – which in some cases resulted from the interaction of experts after the 2009 expert meeting – and takes stock of the conclusions reached, highlighting areas where there is fundamental consensus, and those where more information and analytical work are required. Second, the results form the basis of discussion of the strategies and policies that can be considered to prepare global agriculture for the 2050 perspective.

Piero Conforti