Setting The Stage

A year and a half ago, the global population hit eight billion. It’s expected to reach nine billion within 20 years, and a whopping 10 billion by the mid ‘50s! Domestically, our population surpassed 335M this year - an increase of over 1.7M Americans. While this .05% increase is small, the issue is more about where everyone now lives. The State of New York shrank by 2.1% while Illinois and Louisiana lost 1.6% and 1.3% respectively. Where did they go? The South – the nation’s most populous region – accounted for 87% of the nation’s growth in 2023. And what used to be fields of rural agriculture have transformed into factories, cul-de-sacs, retail, and more – which creates a new problem.

How do we feed everyone?

Clearly, we’re not doing a great job as 44 million Americans are food insecure (13 million of which are children) with 49 million turning to food stamps. In less-developed countries, the problem is far worse. Collectively, the gap between crop calories produced in 2010 and those needed by 2050 requires tillable land 2x the size of India! Rapid deforestation of the Amazon is the current approach, but certainly not a sustainable one. And reducing waste (crops rotting on shelves, poor distribution, etc.) has not made a dent in our food insecurity.

Question. How do you feed more and more people on less and less tillable land?

Greenhouses! Commercial greenhouses enjoy perfect growing weather throughout the year, which means continuous harvests of specialty crops (lettuce, tomatoes, beans, strawberries and more). When we produce more food, we can feed more people. Plus, greenhouses use 95% less water than open field operations, no pesticides, and fertilizer run-off is eliminated. Best yet, farmers can enjoy dramatically improved yield and revenue/acre vs. their open-field, single-harvest operations and create more jobs for rural Americans.

More to come!

Sources: Census.gov, Feeding America, USDA, World Resources Institute.