The State of THE WORLD’S LAND AND WATER RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE 2025

Chapter 1 Challenges for land and water resources

Competition for land

Various economic activities compete with agriculture for land. Often, the best agricultural land is flat (including alluvial plains) and situated close to human residential areas and markets. This land is also preferred for other uses such as housing and industry. In most places, urban expansion translates into loss of prime agricultural land (IPCC, 2019). Unplanned and unregulated urban expansion and peri-urban development are important drivers of land-use change in many countries. Globally, urban areas more than doubled in size in just two decades, growing from 33 Mha in 1992 to 71 Mha in 2015. This expansion consumed 24 Mha of some of the most fertile croplands, 3.3 Mha of forestlands and 4.6 Mha of shrublands.

Total production of bioenergy has increased by more than 50 percent since 2000. In 2023, the consumption of biodiesel was 2.5 times greater than it was in 2010 (FAO, 2025b). The increasing production of bioenergy and the increasing demands suggest potential competition of land uses (see Figure 4). Additionally, in many parts of the world, the production of cash crops aimed at distant markets exacerbates pressure on land, soil and water resources and aggravates competition with production aimed at local consumption (FAO, 2023b). The production and use of biomass for energy represents an additional risk of land degradation, food insecurity and GHG emissions (IPCC, 2019).

Figure 4 Trends in consumption of bioenergy, 2010–2023

SOURCE: Authors’ own elaboration based on FAO. 2025. FAOSTAT: Bioenergy. [Accessed on 1 July 2025]. https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/BE. Licence: CC-BY-4.0.

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FAO. 2025. The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture 2025 – The potential to produce more and better.
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VIET NAM. A lone farmer walks between rice paddy fields in Yen Bai.