The future also presents a formidable challenge for Asia. In the next 20–25 years, Asia will have the highest absolute increase in population, from 3 billion to 4.5 billion. During the same period, the urban population will nearly double from 1.2 billion to 2 billion, as rural people move to the cities in search of employment. Urbanization and income growth frequently lead to shifts from a diet based on root crops (cassava, yam, and sweetpotato), sorghum, millets, and maize to rice and wheat, which require less preparation time, and to more meat, milk, fruits, vegetables, and processed foods. Meeting the food needs of Asia’s growing and increasingly urbanized population requires increases in agricultural productivity and matching these increases to dietary changes and rising incomes. The demand for cereal production is predicted to increase by about 40% from the present level of 650 million tons. This increase will have to be achieved with less labor, water, and arable land, because there is no scope for increasing the cultivated areas.
