Sustainable food futures: opportunities to alleviate pressure on Earth System

Despite the global population exceeding eight billion, food production per capita is globally higher than ever. However, this achievement has led to significant environmental impacts, with agriculture being the largest sector contributing to the transgression of many planetary boundaries, including biogeochemical flows, biosphere integrity, land system changes, and freshwater changes. To move towards more sustainable food futures, several opportunities exist, such as reducing food loss, upcycling by-products into livestock and aquaculture feeds, implementing double cropping systems, and developing cultivated meat alternatives.
Here first a global overview of the multiple pressures agricultural practices apply on Earth systems is provided, with a focus on their impact on water and land resources, biodiversity, and nutrient pollution. The main emphasis is, however, to synthesize the potential of various interventions that could mitigate these pressures and promote sustainability. These insights are crucial for understanding the intricate links between land use, water systems, and food production,and for identifying effective and equitable future resource management strategies.