ABSTRACT
The availability, quality and safety of food is a paramount concern for any society. The main concern, at the global level, is an adequate food supply for the planet’s inhabitants. The rapid growth of the world’s population, an increase from 1 billion in the 1800s to more than 7 billion today, spurred important changes in the food domain. The introduction of fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides played a major role in allowing the world to respond to this change. Although the role of these products and their use is not without controversy, without them a large part of the world population would starve to death.
