Rome — The global food system is approaching a critical breaking point as agriculture will need to produce approximately 50 percent more food, animal feed and fiber by 2050 than it did in 2012 to meet the demands of a rapidly growing population. This warning comes from the latest edition of the Food and Agriculture Organization’s report, The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture 2025 (SOLAW 2025). The study highlights severe pressure on natural resources and warns that current farming practices are undermining agriculture’s future ability to sustain food supplies.
Released on December 1, the report describes a worsening cycle where land, soil and water are being depleted faster than they can regenerate. As these natural foundations erode, the capacity to meet both present and future agricultural needs is being severely reduced.
Rising Demand on Limited Land and Water
Between 1964 and 2023, global agricultural output tripled. This surge was achieved mainly through intensified farming methods rather than expansion of land under cultivation. While farmland area grew by only eight percent across six decades, the total area equipped for irrigation more than doubled. Today, nearly one quarter of all croplands are irrigated a development that has significantly boosted yields but has also deepened environmental concerns.
According to the FAO report, several factors are now threatening the sustainability of food systems:
Water use in agriculture accounts for roughly 72 percent of all freshwater withdrawals worldwide, a proportion expected to increase further. Excessive pumping of groundwater in farming regions has contributed to falling water tables and seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers.
More than 1.6 billion hectares of land over 10 percent of Earth’s total surface are now degraded as a result of poor land management practices. Alarmingly, over 60 percent of these degraded areas lie on farmland.
Continued expansion of agricultural activities is driving deforestation and damaging ecosystems such as peatlands that store large amounts of carbon. The report warns that clearing more land is not a viable solution, as critical biodiversity needed to support food production is being destroyed in the process.
A Shift to Smarter Production
The SOLAW 2025 report does offer cautious hope. It estimates that the world could feed as many as 10.3 billion people by around 2085, when global population levels are projected to peak, provided that farming systems adopt more sustainable and efficient practices.
The FAO emphasises that future productivity gains must come from “smarter” systems rather than simply increasing output with existing methods. This includes closing yield gaps the difference between current crop productivity and what could ideally be achieved and expanding the use of farming practices that are tailored to local soil and water conditions.
The report points to methods such as agroforestry, rotational grazing and rice-fish farming, which can enhance resilience, improve output and protect natural resources simultaneously. Integrated systems like these reduce pressure on land, improve soil carbon levels and make farming landscapes more resistant to climate shocks.
The FAO’s central message is that decisions made today about managing land and water will determine whether future generations can depend on secure food supplies while maintaining a healthy planet.