Feeding the World - Meeting the Challenges and Taking Advantage of Opportunities.

Numerous factors are converging to create a crisis in agriculture. World population is projected to reach 9 billion by mid-century. This increase in population along with increasing expectations by many of the world’s people for a better life and an expectation that some part of agricultural output will be used to meet the energy needs in the future will require unprecedented levels of agricultural output. Essentially all of the increases in farm output over the past half century can be accounted for by increases in productivity. Consequently, there must be a commitment for a second Green Revolution. Such was called for by Nobel Laureate, Dr. Norman Borlaug, in his last writing before his death. Clearly, this will require strengthening intensive approaches to farming. Success will require focused and dedicated agricultural research that will lead to still more efficient use of resources. Research must focus on both minor impediments to productivity as well as grand challenges that could change the paradigm of agricultural production such as enabling non-legumes to fix nitrogen and enabling C3 plants to utilize the C4 photosynthetic pathway, enhancing water and nutrition efficiency of crop species and many other important challenges. Success will also entail overcoming a number of constraints such as soil and water erosion, lack of acceptance of bioengineered crops, animal welfare issues, the endangered species act, fertilizer resources and the many unknowns associated with global climate change. My greatest concern is the lack of support for the research needed to generate the information, knowledge and technology required to maintain and strengthen agricultural productivity.