Mankind will have to overhaul the way it grows food if it is to curb the impacts of climate change and to clothe and feed billions more people, a major UN report will say this week. About a third of the Earth's land area is used for agriculture to feed 7.7 billion people. But booming demand for food and resources has pushed the planet to the brink.

Decades of expansion for farming and forestry has caused widespread land degradation globally. Poor farming practices, especially in drier areas, has led to widespread erosion of soils and loss of biodiversity while huge areas of forest and wetlands have been cleared for palm oil, soy, cattle ranching and rubber.

Read the full article in The Straits Times including commentary by Professor Mark Howden.