Founder Future Food Campus Hamburg, Climate Activist, Advocate for Food System Reform and Future Food Tech Innovations, Singer/Songwriter, Speaker, Cofounder/Owner at The Jamplan
Navigating Challenges in the Food Industry Starts with Digesting the Problem 🌱
Why do we need to change our current food system?
You may only been thinking about what to eat and when to eat, but it’s about time to think macroscopically about our entire food system.
Meeting the dietary needs of a growing population and ensuring food security is poised to be a paramount challenge in the coming decades, primarily due to rapid population growth. By 2050, global food systems must accommodate and sustainably nourish over 9 billion individuals. Estimates suggest that food production must surge by 50% to meet this demand, equating to an additional 219,000 people requiring sustenance daily. This requires a drastic increase in food production over the next half-century, underscoring the imperative of responsible growth that safeguards our natural resources for future generations. Primarily controlled by multinational conglomerates, the food industry also promotes unsustainable and unhealthy production and consumption habits, resulting in substantial waste throughout the production and distribution processes.
Limitation 1: Nutrition and Health
One out of every three people suffer from malnutrition.
Our food is too rich in fat, sugar, salt, and meat - for example it can lead to increased heart disease
Our food is less diverse : seventy-five percent of our food now comes from only 12 plants including rice corn and wheat and from five animal species including cows chickens and pigs
According to the World Economic Forum, “while life expectancy has been rising, the length of a healthy life has deteriorated”some text
Diet is the most important driver of health and changing the way people consume food is the key to cultivating a sustainable and healthy food system.
Obesity rates among adults have doubled since 1990, a study in The Lancet reported on 1 March 2024, and quadrupled in children aged 5 to 19. One in eight people globally were living with obesity in 2022.
Unhealthy diets are one of the five major risk factors for non-communicable diseases, such as cancer and diabetes, which account for three-quarters of deaths globally.
Limitation 2: Environmental Impact
The worldwide food system contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, leading to extensive ecological harm, while also undermining the livelihoods of small-scale farmers in numerous countries by depriving them of stable and sustainable income opportunities.
If livestock and food waste were countries, they would be the 3rd & 4th largest emitters of global greenhouse gases
Limitation 3: Waste and food insecurity
Nearly a third of our world population, or 3 billion people, lack consistent access to nutritious dietary options while one third of the food we produce goes wasted.
Almost 800 million people suffer from critical food insecurity and two billion people did not have sufficient access to vitamins and minerals necessary for growth and development
Worst of all, food access remains profoundly unequal, causing extreme hunger to increase in less-developed countries rather than decline.
Limitation 4: natural resources running out
Our natural resources are under pressure sources of fresh water are running dry and existing water resources are becoming polluted.
33% of soils are degraded. our biodiversity is threatened with tropical forests disappearing and many plants and animals endangered such as bees these problems are intensified by
Intensifying competition and diminishing resources such as land, water, and energy pose significant challenges to food production, exacerbated by the overexploitation of wild fisheries. Currently, one-third of the global population resides in regions grappling with water scarcity or compromised water quality. Projections indicate a staggering increase in demand by 2050, necessitating a 220% rise in water usage and a 43% expansion of arable land if current consumption patterns persist. Concurrently, urgent action is imperative to mitigate the adverse environmental impacts of agriculture and food production. For instance, the conversion of forests into agricultural land disrupts ecosystems, diminishes biodiversity, and contributes to heightened levels of greenhouse gases and global warming.
The system is no longer possible - we need a change, and the change starts with YOU.
Introducing a circular food system… 🌍
Now that we know why our food system needs a change, it’s time to get to know the concept of a circular food system.
A circular food system is a concept rooted in the principles of circular economy, aiming to minimize waste and maximize the use of resources within the food production and consumption cycle. It emphasizes sustainability by reducing the environmental impact of food production, distribution, and waste management. Key characteristics of a circular food system include:
Resource Efficiency: It focuses on optimizing the use of resources such as water, energy, and nutrients throughout the entire food supply chain, from farm to fork.
Waste Reduction: Rather than following a linear "take-make-dispose" model, a circular food system seeks to minimize waste generation by promoting practices like composting, recycling, and reducing food loss.
Closed-Loop Systems: Circular food systems aim to create closed-loop systems where by-products and waste from one part of the system become resources for another. For example, food waste can be composted and used to fertilize crops.
Local and Regional Food Systems: Encouraging local and regional food production and consumption reduces the carbon footprint associated with transportation and supports local economies.
Diverse Food Sources: Promoting biodiversity in agriculture helps to build resilience against climate change and pests while also preserving genetic diversity in food crops.
Consumer Awareness and Engagement: Educating consumers about the environmental impacts of their food choices and encouraging sustainable consumption behaviours is essential for the success of a circular food system
Source: Future Food Campus Hamburg
The course will cover different aspects of the circular food system that will give you an in-depth overview of issues and innovations that exist (and give you ideas of areas you could contribute in).
Understanding these problems and potential innovations can be key to addressing some of the UN sustainable development goals including goal 2, 11, 12, and 13.
