Guaranteeing access to sufficient nutrients to the entire global population, which is set to reach 10 billion by 2050, will force a radical rethinking of the current agri-food system. The industrial, linear model of farming has created diversity-free systems that require enormous quantities of pesticides and chemical fertilisers to keep yields high. Cropping and farming practices, with their intensive use of inputs, have led to the exhaustion and erosion of soil and natural systems. The long-term health and resilience of our ecosystem are in danger. However, this trend can and must be reversed.