World leaders are working to end global hunger by 2030 as part of the United Nations Sustainable Development goals, yet food insecurity continues to rise at alarming rates. In Minnesota, food shelf visits were at a record high in 2022, up almost 2 million visits from 2021, according to Hunger Solutions.
Meanwhile, inflation is hitting grocery shoppers and farmers alike. Environmental concerns such as flooding, drought and invasive species continue to challenge our state’s agricultural sector. There is a deep and pressing need to find new, more and better ways to feed our growing population while also providing successful livelihoods for farmers and protecting our environment.
The University of Minnesota is working to address these challenges from every angle. To name a few examples: we’re discovering ways to more efficiently use calories and nutrients to sustainably feed our growing population, we’re using advanced technologies to improve agricultural resource management, and we’re developing exceptionally resilient wheat varieties in the fight against rust, a fungal disease devastating crops globally.
The need for addressing food insecurity is at an all-time high and the ability of our researchers and scientists to meet these challenges is more sophisticated than ever, yet funding for agricultural research and development continues to decline.
According to the USDA, for every $1 spent on agricultural R&D, we see $20 in benefits to the U.S. economy. However, by 2019, public agricultural R&D spending in the U.S. was about a third lower than the peak in 2002. At the same time, other countries have maintained or increased spending in this area.