CATÓLICA-LISBON

 

On July 24, the Earth reached the point at which it had exhausted its annual resources. This so-called Earth Overshoot Day marks the moment when we deplete all the natural resources the planet can regenerate in a year.

This year, the date arrived earlier than ever. And, as usual, the familiar targets emerged: intensive farming, livestock production, and food consumption. But is it fair to point the finger at agriculture?

Agriculture is, above all, a response to humanity’s most basic need: feeding a growing population. In 1950, the world’s population stood at 2.5 billion. Today, we are more than 8 billion. By 2050, it is estimated that we will be close to 10 billion. This population growth demands more food, more calories, and more protein. That is precisely what modern agriculture has been able to deliver, each time using fewer and fewer resources per unit produced (which also makes food more affordable).

Efficiency and Innovation: Agriculture as the solution, not the problem

Intensive agriculture is often criticized for its use of water and land. Yet what is rarely mentioned is that it is precisely this form of agriculture that allows us to produce more with less. Thanks to technology, mechanization, efficient irrigation, biotechnology, and precision farming, we now produce more food per hectare than ever before. Global agricultural productivity has doubled since the 1960s, while agricultural land area has grown only marginally.

The romantic idea that everyone should produce their own food in a backyard or on a balcony may appear sustainable, but it is, in reality, highly inefficient. Decentralized production consumes more water, more land area, and more labor per unit of food (and fails to replenish soil nutrients). Collective, technologically advanced farming enables economies of scale, resource optimization, and reduced waste.

Agriculture vs. other sectors

It is true that agriculture has an environmental impact. However, it is one of the most sustainable economic sectors when compared to others. According to the FAO, agriculture accounts for around 70% of global freshwater use – but that water is used to produce food, not to wash cars or fill swimming pools. In terms of CO₂ emissions, agriculture contributes approximately 18% of global emissions, while the energy and transport sectors combined exceed 60%.

Moreover, agriculture is one of the few economic activities that can be regenerative: practices such as agroforestry, crop rotation, composting, and regenerative farming have the potential to sequester carbon, enhance biodiversity, and restore degraded soils.

Quality of life is also cultivated

The global population does not only need food. It needs quality of life. That means access to goods, services, culture, mobility, and healthcare. All of these require resources. Yet, among all economic activities, agriculture is one of the few that can return ecological value to the planet. A cement factory or an oil refinery can hardly claim the same.

Blaming agriculture for the depletion of the Earth’s resources is, at its core, blaming the messenger. It overlooks the fact that agriculture addresses a basic and growing human need. It disregards that modern agriculture is one of the fields in which the most has been invested in sustainable innovation. And, above all, it reflects urban ignorance about what it truly means to produce food.

From TikTok to the field: The role of education

We live in an increasingly urbanized and digital society. Many of those who criticize agriculture today have never set foot in a field, never seen a cow in real life, never planted a seed. Their notion of sustainability often comes from TikTok videos or slogans on supermarket packaging.

What agriculture lacks is not only water or land. It lacks understanding. It lacks a voice. It lacks education. We need a more informed urban population – one that can distinguish between sustainable farming practices and ideological myths. One that understands that planting a pot of parsley on a balcony may be educational, but it is not agriculture.

Agriculture is not the problem – It is part of the solution

Earth Overshoot Day should serve as a warning. Not as an excuse to blame those who feed the world. Agriculture needs support, innovation, intelligent public policies, and a society that understands it. Because, in the end, without agriculture, there is no sustainability. And no humanity.