The Big Interview:
Professor Louise Fresco We’re on the threshold of an unprecedented challenge for our food system; how will we feed the world’s population whilst reducing the carbon emissions produced by the food chain? Global thought leader Professor Louise O Fresco shares her insights.
Feeding the world without starving the planet By 2050, 9 billion people will inhabit the planet and two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities. Fewer and fewer people will be involved in growing the food we eat and the process of urbanisation will consume more land that has previously been used for growing food. Without proper planning this will put a devastating strain on both our food system and the environment. Food is already a source of great confusion, with individuals and societies struggling to work out what is best to eat in times of climate change, obesity and concerns about animal welfare. How we address these issues will have far-reaching effects on the environment and our ability to feed the booming global population. So how can we feed everyone and address the carbon emissions produced in the process? One increasingly popular theory is that we all give up, or drastically reduce, our intake of meat. There is little doubt we all eat more meat than we need to, but cutting it out of our diets entirely would actually be detrimental to the environment. In fact, meat is essential to a sustainable world. May / June 2020 | 23
