The Race for Global Food Security
By some estimates the world will need to produce 30% more rice by 2050 to feed its growing population
Yet, this is becoming increasingly difficult with yields growing less than 1% per year over the last decade. In Japan, rice shortages have seen prices soar and consumer discontent rise, with the government forced to release emergency stockpiles in the hope of bringing down prices. Yet amidst the crisis, emerging innovations in science and technology are offering hope. Discoveries from the applications of genomics and AI, trained on the growing wealth of rice data being collected and preserved in gene banks, for instance, are creating new rice variants that are both more productive and resilient to our changing climate.
Advances in science and technology alone, however, will not be a silver bullet – there is an urgent need to ensure discoveries made in the lab are affordable and accessible to farmers and have real world impacts on food security and enhancing livelihoods. Technology challenges will also need to be addressed. The growing use of AI will require a commitment of open data access, training of a scientific workforce with expertise in bioinformatics and analytics, as well as the development of guardrails to ensure the responsible use of AI and gene editing in agricultural research. Increasing public and private investment in agriculture R&D, particularly in low-income countries, will also be crucial. Rewards are significant, with studies revealing economic returns of investment in agriculture R&D, on a cost-to-benefit ratio, of 1:10.
Hosted in Japan - a major development partner to the global south - this event will focus on the innovations from the spheres of genomics, advanced biology and AI with the potential to transform global food systems, and explore what is possible when cutting-edge science, smart technologies and investment come together, highlighting the opportunities, wider benefits and return from investments.
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Key Discussion Points
Innovation
What are the emerging innovations, and how can we address bottlenecks from the lab to the farm to ensure lab discoveries are mainstreamed and scaled in breeding systems and farming practice?
Research
How can we better support upstream research into new, more resilient and productive rice varieties to support food security?
AI and Technology Transformation
What is the potential of AI to transform agricultural R&D, the barriers to its use, and how can the technology’s transformative potential be fully realised?
Investment
What is the public and private sector investment gap and ROI of investment in agricultural R&D, particularly in low-income countries, to achieve food security? How do we close the gap?
Collaboration
How can multi-stakeholder partnerships and collaborations address research and investment gaps?
Watch the First Two Events On-Demand
The Race for Global Food Security
How researchers and policymakers are applying science to tackle food risks
Global Food Security in a Changing Climate
Ensuring fairer food systems to meet global supply and demand pressures
"This event gave me insight into the current challenges posed by climate change and the contributions of partners, researchers, government agencies, the private sector, and farmers in tackling food insecurity and climate change."
Past Delegate Global Food Security series
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