A rock and a hard place Peak phosphorus and the threat to our food security Soil Association (2010)
The approaching ‘perfect storm’ of climate change, resource depletion, diet-related ill health and population growth is forcing us all to think again about how we produce and consume food. Yet, there is one critical issue in securing our future food security that is missing from the global policy agenda: we are facing the end of cheap and readily-available phosphate fertiliser on which intensive agriculture is totally dependent.
The supply of phosphorus from mined phosphate rock could ‘peak’ as soon as 2033, after which this non-renewable resource will become increasingly scarce and expensive.
This report sets out the actions we need to take to close the loop on the phosphorus cycle to address future shortages and prevent further environmental damage from phosphate pollution.
Bibliographic information
Soil Association (2010). A rock and a hard place Peak phosphorus and the threat to our food security Soil Association, UK
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Food security and productive sanitation (WG5)English
