Global Food Security-- It's Not Solved by Targeting Either Yield Or Waste, but by several Complementary Food Wedges Together

Food wedges: Framing the global food demand and supply challenge towards 2050

Brian A. Keating, , Mario Herrero, Peter S. Carberry, John Gardner, Martin B. Cole in Global Food Security

Highlights

•The food demand challenge to 2050 consists of three component “food wedges”.

•These are classed according to their target pathways.

•14 pathways likely to make up the food security ‘solution space’ are nominated.

•46% of required additional food demand may come from increased food production.

•33.6% may come from avoiding reductions in future production potential.


The “mega-wedges” can broken down into three distinct strategies with several  pathways under each strategy.

A. Pathways that target reducing the food production demand curve

1. Reducing food waste from farm to consumer

2. Reducing over-consumption in human diets

3. Rebalancing the livestock component of future diet

4. Developing “smart” biofuel policies and/or technologies

B. Pathways that target filling the production gap

5. Expanding the land resources used for agricultural production

6. Expanding the water resources used for agricultural irrigation

7. Expanding aqua-culture (on land or in oceans)

8. Closing yield gaps in existing crop and/or livestock production systems

9. Developing new farming systems that intensify land/water use

10. Crop and/or livestock improvement to lift the genetic potential

C. Pathways that involve avoiding losses in current or future production potential

11. Maintaining pest and disease resistance and biosecurity

12. Avoiding soil and water degradation

13. Minimising climate change through mitigation that maintains food security

14. Adaptation to climate change that can׳t be avoided.

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