Degradation of a third of Earth’s soil caused by intensive agriculture

Planet Earth's soil is subject to degradation unless human habits of consumption change dramatically (Photo © Pixabay)

According to a UN-backed study, one third of the planet’s soil is massively degraded by the impacts of urbanization, climate change, forest loss, erosion as well as, most importantly, industrial farming - a total of 24bn tonnes of fertile land are being lost every year. As a result, the study demands to shift away from intensive agriculture. The UN warns that unless remedial actions are initiated, the severe decline of fertile soil will continue due to increasing demands for food and productive land and will accrue to conflicts like those in Chad and Sudan. In order to stop or even to reverse the destructive impact of intensive agriculture on farmland, the world’s population has to drastically lower levels of meat consumption, to improve the land regulation as well as the efficiency of farming.

To learn more about the revitalization of soil please visit: https://www.soilassociation.org/our-campaigns/save-our-soils/