Introducing the Energy-Agriculture Nexus

Background

The United Nations projects a world population of 9.7 billion by 2050. As a result, the world will have to feed 2.5 billion more people than today. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that by 2050 current food production needs to rise by 70 percent to satisfy the expanding demand (FAO, 2011). Given the planetary boundaries, especially limited energy and water resources, meeting this target is one of the century’s biggest challenges. At the same time, increased demand for processed food, meat, dairy, and fish adds further pressure to the food supply system, and growing impacts of climate change pose a further constraint (Godfray et al., 2010).

The following article aims to provide you with basic knowledge on the Energy-Agriculture Nexus. You also can check out the introduction video on the Energy-Agriculture Nexus by the Partners of the "Powering Agriculture: An Energy Grand Challenge for Development" (PAEGC) initiative: