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Glossary

Population growth

The world population continues to grow strongly despite falling fertility rates. According to the World Population Prospects of the United Nations, the world population will grow from 7.7 billion in 2019 to 8.5 billion in 2030. By the year 2050, the UN expects the world population to rise to 9.7 billion people. The Asian and Sub-Saharan countries have a large share of the population growth. These are countries in which food security is already only partially guaranteed.

The growth of the world population leads to an increasing demand for food. At the same time, more and more people are living in cities: Today it is already 60% of the world population, according to UN forecasts it will be 70% by 2050, because every day 200,000 people migrate from the countryside to the cities. Many will live in so-called megacities, i.e. cities with more than 10 million inhabitants. This poses major challenges for food logistics, but above all for farmers all over the world.

In order to be able to provide enough food for the world's population in 2050, agriculture will have to produce more than half as much more than it did in 2010. In order for this to be possible, farmers must have the latest agricultural technologies, plant protection and breeding processes available on a large scale. For it is also true that: In order to prevent rural exodus, agriculture must become attractive to young people. And in ageing societies like in Europe, technological support allows farmers stay longer in their job.

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Terms from the glossary