Why biodiversity is important for food?
Biodiversity is essential to food and agriculture
It supplies many vital ecosystem services, such as creating and maintaining healthy soils, pollinating plants, controlling pests and providing habitat for wildlife, including for fish and other species that are vital to food production and agricultural livelihoods.
How does loss of biodiversity affect food production?
Biodiversity for food and agriculture is vital for food security. The erosion of biodiversity will undermine the capacity of agricultural systems to adapt to changing conditions and shocks, such as climate change, and outbreaks of pests and diseases that may jeopardise food security and livelihoods.
What are the effects of biodiversity loss?
Biodiversity loss can have significant direct human health impacts if ecosystem services are no longer adequate to meet social needs. Indirectly, changes in ecosystem services affect livelihoods, income, local migration and, on occasion, may even cause or exacerbate political conflict.
What are the effects of agriculture on biodiversity?
Agriculture is one of the major drivers of biodiversity loss. Next to biodiversity loss due to habitat destruction by conversion of natural lands into agriculture, intensification of agriculture has led to a strong decline of specific farmland biodiversity.
Why is biodiversity a problem?
Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives. Put simply, reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease, and where fresh water is in irregular or short supply. For humans that is worrying.
What are the causes and effects of biodiversity?
Habitat destruction
Habitat destruction is a major cause of biodiversity loss. Habitat loss is caused by deforestation, overpopulation, pollution, and global warming. Species that are physically large and those living in forests or oceans are more affected by habitat reduction.
How does biodiversity affect the economy?
Biodiversity Underpins Economic Activity
Agriculture, forestry and fisheries products, stable natural hydrological cycles, fertile soils, a balanced climate and numerous other vital ecosystem services depend upon the conservation of biological diversity.