Growing populations, income gains and urbanization are translating into increasing demand for livestock products,particularly in developing countries. Feeding a larger, more affluent population of over 9 billion in 2050 will require asubstantial increase in agricultural production: a doubling of demand is expected for developing countries and a 70 percentincrease for the world as a whole. This growth is associated with a widespread transformation of the livestock sector. Whilethe sector provides high value food and many other economic and social functions, this rapid growth in demand ishappening amidst concerns, not only about resource scarcity and climate change but also about the need for more equitabledevelopment, the urgency of poverty reduction through agricultural development and public health risks associated withagricultural intensification.
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