Global Food Systems:

AN OUTLOOK TO 2050

Laying out four visions for the future, this report will examine how the global food system can feed the world in the year 2050. While there is a consensus on the need to end world hunger, there is no agreement on how this should be accomplished. The purpose of this report, therefore, is to assist policy makers in determining how best to approach the fight against hunger, from selecting normative goals to developing strategies to best obtain them. This report is distinct from others on the subject in its use of normative scenarios that describe preferred futures rather than possible futures. Each scenario is based on a different school of thought among leading actors who shape the global food system. Some actors assume development should continue along its current course, with food production boosted by expanding industrial agriculture.