Nepal Faces Chemical Fertilizer Shortage Amidst Production Challenges

According to two UN-affiliated bodies, the World Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), the world's population currently requires about 18 to 20 trillion calories of food energy daily to be fed. To produce this amount of energy, 14 to 5 million metric tons of food are needed daily.

This means that more than 5 billion tons of food are needed annually. According to FAO data, 10 billion metric tons of food are currently produced worldwide. This includes daily necessities such as grains, fruits, vegetables, and animal products. Only about 30 percent of the produced food is consumed by humans. Of the remainder, about 30 percent is used as animal feed. About 30 percent is wasted during processing, supply, and consumption. The remaining about 10 percent of food is used for biofuel production.