7 - A food system fit for the future

Abstract

While many of us might believe it is plastic waste drifting in the sea, planes polluting the skies, and car exhausts choking our cities that pose the biggest threats to our environment, we are discovering that it is in fact our food system that is the gravest cause of damage to the web of life upon which we all depend. Industrial agriculture geared toward ever higher yields leads to a wide range of ecological impacts, including: deforestation; greenhouse gas emissions; soil degradation; nutrient enrichment; and the impact of pest control chemicals on nontarget species. Alternative food production strategies, including agroecological methods, can be harnessed to reduce these impacts. These will require an integrated approach, involving public policy, changed priorities among private sector companies, and altered consumer behavior.