5–6 CLIL | Geography
Cameroon
1 Work in pairs. Look at the statistics and
discuss the question.
Why do you think people spend more on food in
developing countries?
2 Read the text. What major change is going
to happen in the world by 2050?
Will the world run out of food one day?
T
his is the BIG question and a major
concern for the future. You probably
can’t imagine not having enough
food to eat, or going to the supermarket and
finding all the shelves empty. Food is always
available if you want it and have the money
to buy it, right? Well, what if this wasn’t
the case?
In the short term, things will probably be
OK. According to the Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO), the number of hungry
people worldwide has been falling for
the past decade. But there are still nearly
a billion undernourished people on the
planet, just as there are still parts of the
world where more than a third of the
food produced is simply wasted. This
can be due to lack of refrigeration and
storage in developing nations, or purely
because food is just not eaten, as in some
developed countries.
By 2050, the global population is almost
certainly going to rise from seven billion to
an estimated nine billion. The FAO predicts
that food production needs to increase
dramatically by at least 70% over the next
30 years to cope with this growth. There are
other factors, too, which will only widen the
gap between food supply and demand in
the coming decades if nothing is done soon.
For example:
Global warming: Changes in our climate
will mean more droughts in the future,
making it more difficult to grow crops. This
will lead to an increase in food prices.
the effect of climate change on crops
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B1
Percentage of
income spent
50%
Kenya
41%
47%
40%
on food by
an average 30%
China
21%
household 20%
USA UK
10% 9%
7%
0%
Crop diseases: Many pests are becoming
resistant to insecticides, and climate change
is bringing new diseases to crops as new
species of pests appear. This is resulting in
the loss of up to 25% of crops.
Urbanisation: Using arable land to make
way for building development will destroy
valuable farming terrain.
Water use: Agriculture accounts for 70% of corn fields in Argentina
the world’s water use and 550 billion litres
are wasted in crop production each year.
Better methods of irrigation could raise food
production by around 60%.
In brief, the world is trying to grow more food
on less land with limited access to water,
while facing increased costs for essentials like
fertiliser and fuel. So what is the solution?
There are several practices in action to try to
solve the global food crisis. These include: growing rice in China
Genetically-modified crops: Staple foods
such as rice and corn are now being
developed to resist adverse weather like
droughts and flooding.
Technology: Farmers and food manufacturers
in developing countries are at a disadvantage
and need more advanced equipment to deal
with risks such as crop diseases, adverse
weather and water shortage.
Boosting crop yields: Better farming crop irrigation
techniques can reduce food shortages.
Educating farmers in the developing world
to make better use of fertiliser and over- Experts warn that we must take action now
used soil will help improve the quality and or the consequences could be devastating.
quantity of their harvest – farmers in China
grow around seven times as much food on
the same amount of land as a farmer in
Africa, for example.
This sheet may be photocopied and used within the class.
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 5–6 CLIL | Geography
3 Read the text again. Are these statements
T (True) or F (False)?
1 The world will run out of food completely
by 2050.
2 There has been a decrease in the number
of people who suffer from hunger
worldwide since the early 2000s.
3 Food waste on our planet is now at more
than half of all food produced.
4 One of the reasons why food production
needs to increase is because of climate
change.
5 Climate change is also causing an increase
in crop diseases. T/F
6 Farmers will be paying less for basics like
fertiliser and fuel in the future.
7 Staple foods which have been genetically
modified for decades are now steadily
increasing food production.
8 New developments in farming technology
will help improve food production.
4 What do these numbers in the text refer to?
1 1 billion 
2 550 billion 
3 60  crops
4 × 7  boost [v]:  to help something increase, improve or
5 25  become more successful
6 9 billion  cope with [v]:  to deal successfully with a difficult
5 Work in pairs and discuss the questions.
1 Are there any particular foods that are produced
in your country? Are the foods mainly for local
consumption or are they exported? Do you know
if there is enough of these foods produced or are
there any food shortage problems?
2 What else do you think can be done to ensure
there is enough food for everyone in the future?
DID YOU KNOW?
❍ An increase in meat consumption around the globe
is another factor that is affecting food production.
A growing middle-class in countries like China and
India is eating more meat, and this means that a
lot more cereal is needed to feed the animals. This
cereal would otherwise be used as a staple food.
What’s more, it takes 1,500 litres of water to grow
1 kg of cereal, but 15,000 litres to get 1 kg of meat!
In fact, it’s estimated that cereal production needs
to increase by 50% and meat production by 85% to
meet the growing demand by 2050.
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This sheet may be photocopied and used within the class.
B1
PROJECT
6 The estimated increase in the global
population over the next 30 years is
T/F
a major concern affecting supply and
demand in food production. As the text
suggests, global warming, crop diseases,
T/F
urbanisation and water use are all
contributing factors. Find out about
T/F
another factor which is also a cause for
concern. Describe the key problem and
how it will affect food production. Present
T/F
the information to the class.
7 As the text suggests, genetically-modified
crops, technology and boosting crop
T/F yields are all practices that are being
used to try to solve the global food crisis.
Research one more practice that is being
T/F used. Think about how it will benefit
food production in the future. Present the
T/F information to the class.
VOCABULARY FOCUS
adverse [adj]:  negative, unpleasant or harmful
arable [adj]:  describing land suitable for growing
situation
crop [n]:  a plant grown for food
devastating [adj]:  causing a lot of harm or damage
drought [n]:  a long period of time when there is little
or no rain
fertiliser [n]:  a natural or chemical substance added
to soil to help crops grow
harvest [n]:  the activity of collecting crops
insecticide [n]:  a chemical for killing insects that
damage crops
irrigation [n]:  watering the land through a system of
pipes, ditches, etc. to make crops grow
pest [n]:  an insect or small animal that damages
crops or food supplies
resistant [adj]:  not harmed or affected by something
run out of [v]:  to use all of something and not have
any left
shelf [n]:  used for talking about the goods that are
available in shops
shortage [n]:  a lack of something that you need or
want
staple [adj]:  describing an important food that
people eat regularly
terrain [n]:  an area of land
undernourished [adj]:  not getting enough food
yield [n]:  an amount of something that is produced
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