The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and FAO's Global Soil Partnership collaborated with experts from across Asia and other regions to produce the first-ever Soil Atlas of Asia.

Satisfying the changing food habits and increased demand for food intensifies pressure on the world’s water, land and soil resources. However, agriculture bears great promise to alleviate these pressures and provide multiple opportunities to contribute to global goals.

This document is based on the answers provided by soil laboratories to the survey “global assessment on laboratory capacities and needs” (see Annex II), which was conducted by the Global Soil Laboratory Network (GLOSOLAN) under the framework of the Global Soil Partnership of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Soil pollution is a chemical degradation process that consumes fertile soils, with implications for global food security and human health.

The report addresses the extent and future trends of soil pollution, considering both point source and diffuse soil pollution, and describes the risks and impacts of soil pollution on health, the environment and food security – including land degradation and the burden of disease resulting from exposure to polluted soil.

In the framework of World Soil Day 2020, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS), and the Global Soil Partnership (GSP) launched a children's book contest on Soil Biodiversity with the motto "Keep soil alive, protect soil biodiversity".

Soil organisms play a crucial role in boosting food production, enhancing nutritious diets, preserving human health, remediating polluted sites and combating climate change, but their contribution remains largely underestimated, FAO said in its first ever report on "The State of Knowledge of Soil Biodiversity".