By Abdullahi Lukman
Twenty-one prominent scientists have called for urgent global reform of food systems to halt and reverse land degradation, warning that failure to act will undermine efforts to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss.
Their recommendations, published on August 13, 2025, in the journal Nature, outline a transformative pathway that could spare or restore nearly 44 million square kilometers of land by 2050—an area larger than the entire African continent.
The study quantifies for the first time how reducing food waste by 75% and maximizing sustainable ocean-based food production could dramatically reduce pressure on terrestrial ecosystems.
According to the authors, these measures—combined with large-scale land restoration—would not only mitigate approximately 13 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually but also improve biodiversity, human health, and food security.
“By transforming food systems, restoring degraded land, and harnessing the potential of sustainable seafood, we can ‘bend the curve’ and reverse land degradation,” said lead author Fernando T. Maestre of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia.
“This is not just about the environment; it’s about securing a healthier, more stable planet for all.”
The paper emphasizes that food systems have not been fully integrated into global climate and biodiversity strategies.
It urges coordinated efforts among the three Rio Conventions—the UN Conventions on Desertification (UNCCD), Biodiversity (CBD), and Climate Change (UNFCCC)—to align goals and policies focused on land and food.
Among the key proposals is restoring 50% of degraded land by 2050 through sustainable practices, a significant increase from the current global target of 30% by 2030.
This would involve restoring 13 million square kilometers of cropland and non-cropland.
The authors stress that restoration must be inclusive, empowering Indigenous peoples, smallholder farmers, women, and vulnerable communities.
They also propose a dramatic cut in global food waste, which currently accounts for a third of all food produced.
If waste were reduced by 75 percent, an estimated 13.4 million square kilometers of agricultural land could be spared.
Solutions include stricter food waste regulations, banning aesthetic standards for produce, encouraging food donations, and improving infrastructure for small farmers in developing countries.
Shifting diets, especially in wealthier nations, forms another pillar of the strategy.
Replacing 70 percent of unsustainably produced red meat with sustainable seafood could free up 17.1 million square kilometers of land.
In addition, replacing just 10% of global vegetable intake with seaweed-derived products could free another 0.4 million square kilometers, while also reducing emissions.
The scientists recommend redirecting agricultural subsidies away from industrial farms toward sustainable smallholder farming, implementing land-based taxes to penalize polluters, adopting environmental labeling to guide consumer choices, and improving data systems to monitor land use and emissions.
“This isn’t just a rural issue,” said Barron J. Orr, UNCCD’s Chief Scientist. “Land degradation affects the food on all our plates, the air we breathe, and the stability of our world.
Once soil fertility is lost and biodiversity collapses, restoration becomes exponentially harder and more expensive.”
Other co-authors highlighted the broader societal implications of land degradation, including forced migration, conflict, and widening inequality.
Professor Dolors Armenteras of Colombia’s National University said smallholder farmers, who grow much of the world’s food, are particularly vulnerable to climate-driven land loss.
Professor Carlos M. Duarte, a marine scientist at KAUST, stressed the need to integrate marine and land-based food systems.
“Seafood and seaweed are sustainable, nutritious alternatives that relieve pressure on land. Integrating them is fundamental to food security and ecosystem restoration,” he said.
In conclusion, the authors urge world leaders to elevate food systems in global environmental policy, arguing that coordinated international action can simultaneously address land degradation, climate change, and biodiversity collapse.
The window for action, they warn, is rapidly closing.
