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Research Article

Global food demand and the sustainable intensification of agriculture

David Tilman, Christian Balzer, Jason Hill, and Belinda L. Befort
  1. aDepartment of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108;
  2. bDepartment of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106; and
  3. cDepartment of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108

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PNAS first published November 21, 2011; https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1116437108
David Tilman
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  • For correspondence: tilman@umn.edu
Christian Balzer
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Jason Hill
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Belinda L. Befort
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  1. Contributed by David Tilman, October 12, 2011 (sent for review August 24, 2011)

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Abstract

Global food demand is increasing rapidly, as are the environmental impacts of agricultural expansion. Here, we project global demand for crop production in 2050 and evaluate the environmental impacts of alternative ways that this demand might be met. We find that per capita demand for crops, when measured as caloric or protein content of all crops combined, has been a similarly increasing function of per capita real income since 1960. This relationship forecasts a 100–110% increase in global crop demand from 2005 to 2050. Quantitative assessments show that the environmental impacts of meeting this demand depend on how global agriculture expands. If current trends of greater agricultural intensification in richer nations and greater land clearing (extensification) in poorer nations were to continue, ∼1 billion ha of land would be cleared globally by 2050, with CO2-C equivalent greenhouse gas emissions reaching ∼3 Gt y−1 and N use ∼250 Mt y−1 by then. In contrast, if 2050 crop demand was met by moderate intensification focused on existing croplands of underyielding nations, adaptation and transfer of high-yielding technologies to these croplands, and global technological improvements, our analyses forecast land clearing of only ∼0.2 billion ha, greenhouse gas emissions of ∼1 Gt y−1, and global N use of ∼225 Mt y−1. Efficient management practices could substantially lower nitrogen use. Attainment of high yields on existing croplands of underyielding nations is of great importance if global crop demand is to be met with minimal environmental impacts.

  • food security
  • land-use change
  • biodiversity
  • climate change
  • soil fertility

Footnotes

  • ↵1To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: tilman{at}umn.edu.
  • Author contributions: D.T. designed research; D.T., C.B., J.H., and B.L.B. performed research; D.T., C.B., and B.L.B. analyzed data; and D.T., J.H., and B.L.B. wrote the paper.

  • The authors declare no conflict of interest.

  • This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1116437108/-/DCSupplemental.

Freely available online through the PNAS open access option.

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Global food demand and the sustainable intensification of agriculture
David Tilman, Christian Balzer, Jason Hill, Belinda L. Befort
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Nov 2011, 201116437; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1116437108

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Global food demand and the sustainable intensification of agriculture
David Tilman, Christian Balzer, Jason Hill, Belinda L. Befort
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Nov 2011, 201116437; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1116437108
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