General Unit Information

Feeding a growing population in the face of global climate change in a sustainable way is possibly the biggest challenge facing the world today. Food security is a complex concept. It depends on the production of food (agricultural yield), the availability of food (distribution, cost) and its nutritional value. The United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a challenge to the global community to improve human well-being, while also conserving Earth’s natural resources and the vital ecological functions on which we all depend. Meeting food production goals in the face of climate change requires new approaches to food production. This unit will examine the factors that govern crop yields, assess the threats to global food production, including bio-security risks, the importance of genetic diversity in plants and animals, and the nutritional value of foods. The role of genetic and digital technologies in enhancing food production and food value will be evaluated. Arguments for global diets to become essentially plant based will be discussed and analysed. You will apply a range of technical and conceptual skills and knowledge from science, economics and other disciplines to major contemporary and future issues of food security.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

1. Discuss how the sustainable development goals relate to food security and theorise how apparent conflicts between them could be managed;
2. Assess the economic and environmental costs and benefits of new approaches to agriculture;
3. Compare different approaches to genetic improvements for enhanced animal and plant production and discuss the governance issues surrounding their introduction;
4. Evaluate and discuss the relationships between the nutritional requirements of consumers and the sustainable production of high quality protein.

Specific Unit Information