What will we eat in 2050?
Towards Sustainable Food Systems
Will we be able to feed 10 billion people by 2050, and at what cost to climate and biodiversity? These questions frequently arise in the sustainable food debate, often accompanied by emotional responses and sometimes lacking concrete data.
Food security in numbers
Scientists from KU Leuven and Wageningen University have collaborated to provide some facts. Marijn Raeven transformed this information into an eight-minute animation video, with Chris MacAskill, scientist and founder of Plant Chompers, providing the voice-over.
Making the food system more sustainable is a complex issue that requires targeted measures. Figures illustrate the urgency of this issue: about 30 per cent of the global population is undernourished while 40 per cent is overweight. Agriculture significantly impacts the environment and climate, while farmers increasingly face the consequences of global warming, declining biodiversity, and income pressures.
Chris MacAskill, the voice behind the video, is the founding father of the popular YouTube channel Plant Chompers, which offers informative stories on nutrition and health.
The creators of the animation video were supported financially by VLIRUOS.
Global Food Security Conference
The fifth Global Food Security Conference took place in Leuven in April 2024. The central theme of the conference is the transition to a just, sustainable, and resilient food system. Tessa Avermaete (KU Leuven) and Martin van Ittersum (Wageningen University & Research) co-chaired this event.
The close collaboration between KU Leuven and Wageningen University was crucial to the development of the animation video. The scientific content was provided by Gerard Govers, Martin van Ittersum, Tessa Avermaete, Wannes Keulemans, and Olivier Honnay. Marijn Raeven structured their input and developed the corresponding animation.