Agriculture & Climate Change
It took 10,000 years for the world’s population to reach 1 billion by the year 1800, another 100 years to double to 2 billion and less than another century to triple to 6 billion by 1999. The Global population now exceeds 7.5 billion and is expected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050 – an additional 2 billion mouths to feed with no more than the existing farmland already cultivated. Meanwhile, About 12 million hectares of land becomes degraded each year. In addition, increasing frequency and intensity of droughts and floods, much due to climate change are adding to the challenge of maintaining food security for this growing population. This is the core mission that the agricultural community and its supply chain face.
Climate change is adding to the challenge of maintaining food security for earth’s growing population.
There is mounting evidence that the best way to meet rising food demand, while conserving biodiversity and combating climatic trends, is to produce as much food as sustainably possible from the land we already farm, so that more natural habitats can be “spared the plow”. Many of the tools to achieve this are deployed by ICL, including integrated solutions for fertilization and irrigation, that are both radically efficient and highly specific to crops, soil and climatic conditions.
Many of the efficient agricultural solutions are also “smart” sustainable solutions. For example, controlled-release fertilizers enable nutrient uptake by plants in accordance with soil conditions and the crop’s uptake. This mechanism provides a more efficient fertilization regime while also preventing seepage of nitrogen to groundwater and runoff to lakes and rivers. When applied correctly, these fertilizers also emit fewer greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, assisting in the prevention of climate change.
For additional examples of ICL’s products and solutions, see sustainable solutions.
