Introduction

Megatrends are large global trends that are long-lasting, can be empirically documented, and have a major impact on businesses, economies, industries, societies and individuals. Furthermore, megatrends can also be used as a direction for the future. The focus of this book is agriculture, the food industry and food markets and the internal and external factors that surround and influence them. Megatrends can be used to reveal and explain a historical development. An understanding of the connections between drivers, megatrends and societal impacts can be useful when assessing the effects of political and economic interventions—understanding the present can help us predict the future. Megatrends can also be used to project a historical or current development: if megatrends are consistent and substantiated, they are likely to continue into the future.