By 2050 up to 80% of the earth’s population will reside in urban centers. Until then human population will increase by about 2 billion, applying conservative estimates.
If food is to be consumed and produced in as inefficient way as today we will need further arable land the size of Brazil [or almost the size of the United States] by 2050. Over 70 % of land area suitable for farming is used for crop production (sources: FAO and NASA). Most of this production is for fodder for animals not for human food, this happens in a time when grazing on natural land is more and more rare even though it produces both biodiversity and a landscape with high nature values.
An effective land-use solution that embraces the market and the infrastructure is the only solution.
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