From Scarcity to Solutions 2025

12 high-impact technology levers to transform food-water systems FIGURE 6 China & M/East mkt size 2030112 tech levers — Drought-tolerant br eeding — Pest-r esistant br eeding — GHG-friendly br eedingGENETIC IMPROVEMENT— Food security: e.g. in China, since 1970s, Y uan Longping's hybrid rice has incr eased yields 9-fold. — Sustainable agriculture: helps cr ops adapt to envir onment, curbing chemical inputs.— Regions with food import dependence and a focus on sustainable agricultur e. — e.g. China, Middle East, Africa, South East Asia. — Plant-based pr oteins — Fermentation-based proteins — Cell-based pr oteins — Insect-based pr oteins — Algae-based pr oteinsPROTEIN INNOV ATION & NUTRITION$2.4 bn(vs 7.7%)8.8% — Resource conservation: r equir es less land & water (3,200 litr es (l)/kg for pea protein vs 15,000 l/kg for beef). — Food security: domestic alter native protein industry can r educe vulnerability to market swings. — Health improvements: innovations like sweet pr oteins can tackle obesity and diabetes.— Urbanized, health-conscious areas, especially r esour ce- constrained r egions. — e.g. China, Middle East (UAE, KSA).3$2.8 bn(vs 8.2%)9.4% — Data-driven water sour ce selection — Real–time monitoring (e.g. leakage detection, water quality monitoring)DIGIT AL W ATER SOURCING— Secure access to water: data-based models can determine the best water source mix for a stable water supply in droughts. — Water efficiency improvements: sensor -based leakage detection can sharply r educe water loss.— Arid/semi-arid r egions with ageing water infrastructur e. — e.g. Middle East (KSA), North Africa.$5.0 bn(vs 8.8%)8.9% — Solar -power ed reverse osmosis (SRO) — Reverse osmosis (RO) — Multi-stage flash distillation (MSF) — Multi-ef fect distillation (MED)ADVANCED DESALINA TION— Environmental protection: SRO cuts desalination energy use by 75% vs traditional appr oaches. — Carbon emissions reduction: e.g. Saudi desalination may stor e 458 million tonnes of CO2 by 2030. — Groundwater depletion reduction: e.g. Saudi water supply gr oundwater reliance dr ops to 8% by 2030 with desalination.— Arid ar eas with water scar city and abundant seawater resour ces. — e.g. Middle East (KSA, UAE).$19.1 bn(vs 9.5%)9.9% — Aerobic tr eatment systems — Anaer obic systemsBIOLOGICAL W ATER TREA TMENT— Environmental protection: compr ehensive biological tr eatment in food-pr ocessing industry impr oves receiving river water quality . — Water scarcity mitigation: e.g. in M/East Gulf countries, 50% + treated wastewater could be for agricultural irrigation with pr oper systems. — Higher cost-efficiency: lower treatment costs (vs chemicals); biogas as renewable energy .— Regions with food-pr ocessing pollution, e.g. China, Brazil, India. — Water-stressed ar eas for r euse, e.g. South Africa.$3.1 bn(vs 6.0%)6.6% — Softwar e & services — Digital tools − e.g. field IoT/AI, r emote sensing & satellite imagery — Hardwar e − e.g. r obotics & automized smart equipmentPRECISION AGRICUL TURE— Yield improvements: 15-25% higher yields (vs average farms). — Input savings: 20-30% in water , 25% in fertilizers, 12% in seeds, 3% in crop pr otection.— Major agri-r egions seeking productivity gains and r esour ce savings. — e.g. China, South East Asia.$1.6 bn(vs 12.6%)13.5%China & M/East CAGR ‘24-30Why it matters Most relevant emerging markets Agri & Food Water Cross-sector (vs global average)2