ABSTRACT

SUMMARY The trebling of the world’s population since the 1950s has increased the demands on the world’s water and food supplies. This is particularly evident in South East Asia and many states in Africa, where the rapid population growth is outstripping the demand on land and food production resources, moving these countries from net food production countries to foodimporting countries. Modern technologies have increased the ability of the human race to keep increasing food production. However, this is putting additional stress on the available water supplies since 70 per cent of water is needed for the production of food.