Feeding the Ten Billion: Plants and Population Growth

By Lloyd T. Evans

Book Overview

At the current rate of increase, the world's population is likely to reach ten billion by the middle of the 21st century. What will be the challenges posed by feeding this population and how can they be addressed? Written to mark the 200th anniversary of the publication of Malthus' seminal Essay on the Principles of Population, this fascinating book looks at the intimate links between population growth and agricultural innovation over the past 10,000 years, illustrating how the evolution of agriculture has both shaped and been shaped by the course of world population growth. This historical context serves to illuminate our present position and to aid understanding of possible future paths to food security for the planet. A unique and accessible account which will be of interest to a wide audience concerned with global population, food supply, agricultural development, environmental degradation and resource depletion.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0521646855
• ISBN13: 9780521646857
• Release Date: November 1998
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Thoughtful and complete

I had to buy this for course on Agriculture. Found it most instructive. The writing is a bit choppy but the formate made it easy to assimilate.

An excellent history of population and agriculture.

This work is an efficient survey of agriculture and its relation to population growth through history. The chapters are designed to focus on population growth through time. For example chapter 2 is: Reaching for 5 million ( to 8000BC); chapter 3 is: Towards 50 million ( 8000-2000BC); chapter 4 is: The first half-billion ( 2000BC-1500AD); chapter 5 is: Towards the first billion (1500-1825) etc. Under each heading is a discussion of the critical agricultural developments during that time period. The last chapter focuses on the problems of feeding 10 billion people in the future.The research is detailed and knowledgable. The sources are modern and uptodate. The writing is precise. It is an excellent book that covers a lot of ground in a small compass. Highly recommended.