08 / Secure the livelihoods of farmers
Technologies that enable the vocation of farming to thrive—despite weather and market uncertainty—are essential to securing a resilient global food system.
Why it matters
Farmers traditionally rely on crop yields to secure their financial livelihoods, a risky model due volatile commodity prices, geopolitics, increasingly unpredictable weather and pest pressure, among other threats. As the bedrock of our food system, farming must be financially sustainable. Seventy-five percent of farmers are already impacted by climate change or worried about its effects, and 71% report reduced yields as a major concern. Across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, 60% of smallholder households operate at a subsistence level, often struggling to produce enough food to meet basic needs. Challenges extend beyond low and middle-income countries; only around half of US farms are profitable. We aim to change that.
New technologies and innovative business models can help farmers better finance and improve their operations, mitigate risk, access high quality inputs, unlock additional income, and grow and sell their crops more effectively. By providing farmers—regardless of region or size of operation —with these tools, we can strengthen the resilience of the global food system.
What if digital ecosystems enabled smallholder and midsized farmers to reliably sell their crops at fair market value, building lasting financial security for their families and communities? Or what if innovative financing tools enabled smallholder farmers to access better seeds and inputs, increasing yield? What if innovative new crops allowed farmers to add a third crop into their annual rotation, expanding income while improving soil and resource sustainability?
