There are two key aspects to Food Security in the world – (i) the current high number of chronically undernourished people in the world, estimated at around 870 million people (ii) the world population growth trends resulting in a high rate of increase in global demand for food, expected to increase by 60 percent by 2050. The most affected regions are the developing and under-developed countries but due to the scale and scope of the food value chain its repercussions will be seen globally. Thus innovation in the food ecosystem is crucial to bridge the current and future gaps in the food value chain.
The Food value chain involves a diverse range of stakeholders, processes and technologies and hence innovations in this ecosystem come in various sizes and shapes. We see innovations in machine technology to automate farm processes, low cost equipment for developing regions, renewable energy based equipment for remote rural areas with low or no electricity supply etc. Innovative solutions are being developed in the area of Biotechnology to develop high yield crops, low cost seeds, high resistance plant varieties, etc. Even the financial sector has seen several innovations, to facilitate higher agricultural output, in terms of micro-credit solutions to ensure maximum reach, etc. Then there is the area of Distribution and Supply Chain where there is a need for innovation to improve efficiencies, minimize wastages and increase the reach of the network in a cost effective manner.
One interesting area currently being looked at for potential innovations is the domain of meat alternatives – the livestock production will not be able to keep up with growing global demand for meat both due to increasing population and increasing consumption due to lifestyle changes. In the meat replacement domain it is crucial to develop products that not only balance the required proteins but also satisfy the requirements of texture and taste of the meat the product is replacing. Bill Gates recently mentioned in an online article about his experience tasting Beyond Meat’s chicken alternative –he was not able to differentiate it from the real meat. Apart from meeting the increasing livestock demand, viable meat alternatives will also result in smaller amount of vegetation being used to feed the livestock thus leaving more resources (vegetation, land, water, etc.) to be used for humans.
Recently at Crop World Global, an agriculture industry event held in Amsterdam, few of the largest companies in the agriculture industry like BASF and Bayer Crop Science have formed partnerships with global food industry companies like The Coco-Cola Company and scientific organizations like Food and Environmental Research Agency (FERA). They have formed a steering committee to develop and share initiatives, know-how and infrastructure to achieve a sustainable global food and water supply chain – these include areas like crop protection, water and irrigation, waste reduction and efficiency improvements. Companies like General Mills have also identified the need for collaboration and open innovation to solve the global scale of the problems in the area of food security.
The world governments and multinational organizations have identified the critical nature of the area of food security and are working together to identify, design, develop and disburse innovative solutions for the food value chain. Along with the area of renewable energy this is one of the most important areas that need innovation in order to sustain the currently expanding world.