The latest State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns of a ‘silent crisis’ of land degradation that is threatening the welfare of billions of people.
The report states that roughly 1.7 billion people are living in areas where crop yields are failing due to human-induced land degradation, which it describes as ‘a pervasive and silent crisis that is undermining agricultural productivity and threatening ecosystem health worldwide.’
Land is the core of agrifood systems, supporting over 95% of food production, in addition to providing essential ecosystem services that sustain life on the planet. Land degradation typically results from a combination of factors, including natural drivers such as soil erosion and salinisation. However, human activities such as deforestation, overgrazing, and unsustainable irrigation practices, are now among the leading contributors.
To measure degradation, the report compared current values of three key indicators – soil organic carbon, soil erosion, and soil water – against conditions that would exist without human activity under native or natural states. The data was processed through a machine-learning model that integrates environmental and socio-economic drivers of change to estimate the land’s baseline condition in the absence of human activity.
The report estimates that around 1.7 billion people worldwide live in areas where crop yields are 10% lower due to human-driven land degradation. This includes 47 million children under the age of five suffering from stunted growth.
The report outlines actionable opportunities for integrated sustainable land-use and management practices, alongside tailored policies. It states that by reversing just 10% of human-induced degradation on existing croplands through crop rotations or other sustainable land management practices, enough food could be produced to feed an additional 154 million people per year.
In the report’s foreword, FAO Director-General Dongyu Qu said: “To seize these opportunities, we must act decisively. Sustainable land management requires enabling environments that support long-term investment, innovation and stewardship.”
