Brazil has good soil conservation practices, such as crop-livestock-forest integration (ILPF), but more needs to be disseminated among farmers, said the representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Brazil, Alan Bojanic, during the seminar “Soil conservation: Sustainability in food production and water security”, held in Brasilia (DF).
The crop-livestock-forest integration is an agricultural production strategy that brings together different crops to increase the productivity of agribusiness in a sustainable way. The event was promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, in commemoration of the National Day of Soil Conservation, celebrated in this last Sunday (15).
Bojanic participated in the panel “FAO’s work as a multilateral forum to promote soil conservation in Brazil and worldwide”. The representative of the UN agency warned of the worldwide growth of degraded areas affected by desertification in the world. “Thirty-three percent of the world’s soils are degraded,” he said. According to him, Latin America accounts for 14% of the degraded areas of the world; the Caribbean by 26% and South America by 14%. Eighteen Latin American countries have more than 20% of their territory degraded.
“Soil conservation is a very important issue for FAO. In 2015, we had the International Year of Soils to raise awareness among civil society and decision-makers about the profound importance of soil for humanity, “said Bojanic.
According to the FAO representative in Brazil, 95% of the food comes from the land and, therefore, the conservation of soils for the survival of humanity is so important. Soil health and fertility have a direct influence on the nutrient content of our food crops.
He also warned of the need to increase the production of quality food by 60% since, by 2050, the world population will be 29% larger than the current one. The largest growth will occur in developing countries, while 70% of the population will be urban.
Bojanic highlighted the 400-member Global Land Partnership between FAO members and partners. The action aims to promote the sustainable management of soil resources and improve their global governance to ensure sustainable productivity; encourage investment, technical cooperation, political education and awareness; and promote research on the subject.
The International Soil Day, endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2013, is celebrated annually on December 5 as a way of focusing attention on the importance of soil health and the sustainable management of its resources.