Read the text and answer the questions: What will we eat in the future?
By 2050, the Earth's population will be about ten billion. This means we will need to increase food production to
feed almost three billion more people. But how can we do that without destroying the planet?
In the past, whenever we needed to produce more food, we simply cut down forests or ploughed grasslands to
make more farms and pastures. Agriculture has caused the loss of whole ecosystems around the globe, including
the prairies of North America, the Atlantic forest of South America and some of the steppes of Central Asia. We
can no longer do this.
Scientists believe one solution to the problem is vertical farming. This is a method for growing crops indoors in a
highly controlled environment. The vertical farms, which will be in greenhouses in urban areas, will use new
techniques, such as hydroponics and aeroponics, allowing farmers to grow plants without any soil.
Another solution is genetically modified food. Scientists are trying to create 'super plants' which will grow faster
and require less water, fertiliser or pesticides. To do this, they change the genes of the plants' seeds. They can do
the same with animals, too, and they have even managed to grow meat in labs. In the near future, a single cell
from a turkey or a cow will be enough to make a trillion burgers and one day, lab-grown meat might taste just like
meat from real farm animals. But will people eat it?
Some scientists are worried about the possible effects of genetically modified food on people's health, so they
are trying to find ways to make better use of the resources we already have. Insects, for example, a great source
of protein and they don't need as much space or water as farm animals. Aquaculture, or ocean farms, could also
provide a solution to the future food crisis.
Answer the question:
2. What did we do in the past to produce more food?​