Near‐term problems in meeting world food demands at regional levels: A special issue overview

Abstract

Growing food, feed, and fiber in a manner sustainable for future generations is the starting point for improved food security. As the world population continues to grow, it is imperative to improve many aspects of agronomic production systems to better suit local conditions. This special issue of Agronomy Journal examines what agronomists see as today's or near future problems that are currently looming for different regions of the world. Authors from Africa, Asia, and South and North America were invited to write forum papers for this special issue. Some of the current agronomic practices and policies are unsustainable for diverse reasons. Workforce development, climate challenges, soil degradation, water limitations, and pest problems are discussed. Suggested solutions to these problems include integrated techniques, which need to be implemented in knowledgeable systems approaches, to sustain the environment and improve food security. It is hoped that this special issue serves as an outreach platform to the global community to improve communication and spark new collaborations. INTRODUCTIONThe world population continues to grow. It currently stands at 7.8 billion and is projected to increase to 9.8 billion people by 2050 and 11.2 billion by 2100 (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs; https://www.un.org/development/desa/en/news/population/ world-population-prospects-2017.html). Most of the population growth is expected to be concentrated in the least-developed, resource-poor countries of Asia and Africa.Although the Global Food Security Index reported continuous food security improvements between 2012 to 2018, a

From Productive Landscape to Agritouristic Landscape? The Evidence of an Agricultural Heritage System—Zhejiang Huzhou Mulberry-Dyke and Fish-Pond System

“…From the perspective of comprehensive economic, ecological, and social values, mulberry-dyke and fish-pond systems are in line with sustainable development goals. With the popularization of the concept of large grains [43][44][45][46] and people's reflections on the intensification of agricultural systems [47][48][49][50], the comprehensive value of mulberry-dyke and fish-pond systems can become a new driving force for the regional economy.…”

Food Security in Nigeria: Enhancing Workers’ Productivity in Precision Agriculture

“…Several studies have been carried out on the challenge of food security in Nigeria as well as the role of precision agriculture in combating Food security [3,28,30,41,44,47,55]. However, there is a dearth of research that has established the state of Precision Agriculture in Nigeria, the level of adoption of its tools and technologies, and how workers' productivity can be enhanced through precision agriculture towards food security in Nigeria.…”