The United Nations1 projections indicate that global agricultural production will be to increase by 70 % in order to feed 9 billion people on the planet in 2050.
In addition to these quantitative needs, qualitative change is also necessary. In fact, the development of emerging countries (e.g. China with its 1.7 billion of people) shows the appearance of a large middle class whose consumption patterns are approaching Western habits. At present, Western habits are characterised by strong consumption of animal proteins. Animal protein production takes a growing amount of plant proteins for animal feed and has a strong impact on production of greenhouse gases, major cause of climate changes.
Meat processing industry will not be enough to meet global demand for food protein. This is a challenge to the agricultural world, plant production, to its capacity for innovation. The stake is to know “how to produce more and better in order to take care our Planet, considering constraints also (less input, less water, less land)”.
Source : GEPV