Amongst the world's most challenging problems is the need to feed an ever-growing global population sustainably.
Securing the food supply is of paramount importance, and more attention must be given to the threat from fungal pathogens competing with us for our own crops.
We need to raise awareness of this fact across all of society—from politicians to the general public.
Research at the University of Exeter has a strong emphasis on understanding fungal plant disease and in developing new ways to protect our crops.
In a new article, published in Nature Food this week, led by Professor Sarah Gurr and Dr. Helen Fones (UKRI Fellow), a consortium of world-leading Exeter-based fungal researchers has merged their expertise to highlight the threat of fungal disease for our food security.
Professor Gurr said: "Over the past centuries, crop diseases have led to the starvation of the people, the ruination of economies and the downfall of governments.
"Today, the threat to plants of fungal infection outstrips that posed by bacterial and viral diseases combined.
"Indeed, fungal and oomycete diseases have been increasing in severity and scale since the mid 20th Century and now pose a very serious threat to global food security.
"We face a future blighted by known adversaries, by new variants of old foes and by new diseases.
"Modern agricultural intensification practices have heightened this challenge.
"Moreover, climate change compounds the saga as we see altered disease demographics—pathogens are on the move, as shown so elegantly by Professor Dan Bebber and Ph.D. student Tom Chaloner (co-authors)."
Dr. Helen Fones said: "Our review looks to the future; summarizing our main challenges and knowledge gaps, and highlighting the research needed to face the threat of emerging crop pathogens.
"We consider this challenge in terms of both the crops essential for providing calories and those commodities that fuel global trade and the global economy that we rely upon.
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