Global food production methods must change to minimise the impact on the environment and support the world’s capacity to produce food in the future. As with other man-made activities, food production contributes to climate change, water scarcity, soil degradation and the destruction of biodiversity.
It is estimated that 25% of total global greenhouse gas emissions are directly caused by crop and animal production and forestry. The crop and livestock sectors use 70% of freshwater resources and, together with forestry, occupy 60% of the Earth’s land surface.
The level of environmental impact of food production relates to
where and how the food is produced and the local availability of natural
resources, such as water and soil. Often there are trade-offs between
environmental factors, and to date there is no simple set of principles to
determine if one food product is more environmentally sustainable than another.
