Growing Food for Growing Cities
By 2050, 66 percent of the world’s population is expected to live in urban areas—fueling an unprecedented demand for food in urban areas.
The rapid growth of cities is putting pressure
on food systems.
Cities are growing.
Growth of the world’s cities is exploding, fueling an unprecendented demand for food.
Diets are changing.
Urban consumers around the world are demanding an increasingly diverse diet.
Supply chains are evolving.
Meeting demand for food in cities is a major food security challenge, and an opportunity for small-scale farmers.
Growth of the world’s cities is exploding.
See how population growth will shift the world’s top 10 largest cities to different regions over time.
2025
2050
2075
2100
Diets are changing.
Urban consumers are demanding a more diversified diet.
Staple foods, including cereals, roots, tubers, and basic pulses, remain a critically important source of calories for households worldwide.
Urban diets are transforming rapidly, shifting beyond staple foods to include a wider variety of fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, and processed foods.
Supply chains are evolving.
To meet the exploding urban demand for food, supply chains must lengthen geographically, increasing the potential to reach small-scale farmers in distant areas. Click below to see how supply chains are evolving.
How can we feed the world's growing cities?
Find out how the US government—in partnership with governments, the private sector, the scientific community, and civil society—can lead the way in ensuring that food systems can feed the world’s cities sustainably and improve rural economies.