As populations grow and cities become more crowded, the amount of food needed to sustain them grows as well. Let’s look at a breakdown of urban food needs:
Today, at least 55% of the global population lives in urban areas.
About 80% of all food produced is meant for urban consumption.
It is expected that 2.5 billion more people will live in urban areas by 2050.
Already 85% of the global population live in or within three hours of an urban center of >50,000 people.
Food and green waste make up more than 50% of all municipal.
Urbanites consume up to 70% of the food supply.
Some 60% of irrigated croplands and 35% of rain-fed croplands lie within a 12.5-mile (20 km) radius of urban areas.
Food expenses may be as high as two-thirds of total urban household expenditures.
Processed food consumption—with low nutrient value—has increased annually by 5.45% between 1998 and 2012 in lower- and middle-income countries.
Over 2 billion adults are either overweight or obese.
— Source: Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations