Graduate Program in Food Science,
Tohoku University

As various problems directly related to food production, such as population growth and global warming, are piling up on a global scale, today, global food production is at a tipping point. A report from the World Food Program (WFP, July 2023) shows that the number of people facing hunger has increased drastically by 122 million over the past four years (from 613 million in June 2019) to 735 million people. Meanwhile, The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reported that the global volume of food wastage reached approximately 1.3 billion tons, accounting for about one-third of the total 4 billion tons of global annual food production.

Furthermore, the greenhouse gas emissions from food waste processing are estimated to contribute to about 8-10% of the total CO2 emissions. These food-related issues have a tremendous impact not only on the agriculture, livestock, and fisheries industries, but also the environment and human health. We believe that innovation in science and technology related to the “Food Science” field is crucial in resolving these issues. Therefore, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the most critical issue in the field of agricultural science currently is to build an academic foundation that will permanently enable a stable supply of food. To achieve this, developing an interdisciplinary perspective to promote the advancement of education and research related to the field of food science is necessary.