Filling the GAPs: Expert Essays

Agricultural productivity is best expressed as Total Factor Productivity-TFP. TFP is a measure of efficiency in agriculture — the efficiency with which agricultural inputs such as labor, fertilizers and seeds are converted into outputs of crops and livestock. According to the the Global Agricultural Productivity Index (GAP Index), global TFP must increase by 1.73 percent annually to meet global goals for adequate food, feed, fiber, and biofuel for 10 billion people by 2050. When we fall short of this target growth rate, as we have each year since the GAP Index was developed in 2010, this creates a “productivity gap”. The productivity gap is worsening in the world’s poorest countries, where TFP growth now averages only 0.58 percent annually. The productivity gap threatens food security and often forces farmers to cultivate marginal lands, which can also threaten biodiversity. How do we close the productivity gap and get back on track to achieving global food security? This year, the GAP Report editors invited scholars and experts to submit essays based upon their research about strategies for closing the productivity gap and increasing agricultural sustainability and resilience.