Passage

Passage – 2 By 2050, the Earth's population will likely have swelled from seven to nine billion people. To fill all those stomachs — while accounting for shifting consumption patterns, climate change, and a finite amount of arable land and potable water — some experts say food production will have to double. How can we make the numbers add up ? Experts say higher yielding crop varieties and more efficient farming methods will be crucial. So will waste reduction. Experts urge cities to reclaim nutrients and water from waste streams and preserve farmland. Poor countries, they say, can improve crop storage and packaging and rich nations could cut back on resource-intensive foods like meat.

Which one of the following statements best sums up the above passage ?

(a) The population of the world is growing very fast.
(b) Food security is a perennial problem only in developing countries.
(c) The world does not have enough resources to meet the impending food scarcity.
(d) Food security is increasingly a collective challenge. ✓ UPSC's answer

Why the answer is (d)

• By 2050 the world's population will grow from seven to nine billion and food production may have to double, while climate change, limited arable land and potable water add pressure.

• The passage then assigns a role to everyone: experts (better crop varieties, efficient farming), cities (reclaim nutrients and water, preserve farmland), poor countries (better storage and packaging) and rich nations (eat fewer resource-intensive foods).

• A problem that needs action from all these actors is a shared, collective challenge — option (d).

• Hence option (d).

Why the other options are wrong

(a) The population of the world is growing very fast.: Population growth is only the backdrop; the passage is about how everyone must respond.
(b) Food security is a perennial problem only in developing countries.: The passage gives roles to both poor and rich countries, so it is not a problem of developing countries only.
(c) The world does not have enough resources to meet the impending food scarcity.: The passage lists ways to meet the need; it does not say the world lacks the resources.

Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2015, held on 23 August 2015. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.