Nutrients in our food intake down by 40 per cent, says Sadhguru

Addressing a press conference at the World Economic Forum, Sadhguru, Jaggi Vasudev founder of the Isha Foundation, said that due to the absence of trees on agricultural lands, the amount of nutrients in the food we eat has declined by 40 per cent. He also gave emphasis on planting trees on agricultural lands to provide income to the farmers than to plant trees on wasteland.

Davos: "Due to the absence of trees on agricultural lands, the amount of nutrients in the food we eat has declined by 40 per cent," said Sadhguru, Jaggi Vasudev founder of the Isha Foundation, in the World Economic Forum.

The 50th economic summit began on January 20, in Davos, Switzerland under the aegis of the World Economic Forum.

As part of the conference, a press briefing on a new initiative to plant 1 trillion trees worldwide by 2030 was held on Wednesday in Davos. The initiative is held under the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

Sadhguru addressed the media and said, "Only 50 to 60 per cent of the soil can be regenerated by shade. Trees are essential for soil fertility. Due to the absence of trees on farmland, the amount of nutrients in the food we eat has declined by 40 per cent over the past 25 years. To rectify this, trees should also be grown along with crops."

Sadhguru addressing a press conference at World Economic Forum in Davos

"It is better to plant trees on agricultural lands to provide income to the farmers than to plant trees on wasteland. Timber is a lucrative substance. Timber products are much in public demand all over the world. Therefore, it should be declared as an agricultural product, rather than a forest product," he said.

He further said, "In India, over the next 10 years, 220 million people are estimated to move from villages to cities. Likewise, there is a possibility that 1.6 billion people worldwide are said to be able to relocate to cities. The migration of so many people to cities is not good. We need to do many things to prevent this. The most important of these is to enable the farmers to stay in touch with their land."

"Trees planted in the fields can be a long-term cash crop and a profitable one to prevent the villagers from moving to the cities. The environment and the economy should be interlinked. Otherwise, only the economy will grow, and the environment will not improve," he added.

The press conference was attended by the President of Colombia, Evan Tucci, the President of Salesforce.com Mark Benioff, International Ecosystem Activist Hindov Omrov Ibrahim and scientist Dr Janne Kuttal along with the Sadhguru.

Alongside the summit, the Sadhguru will conduct a 3-day meditation class and also a half concert called 'Conscious Retreat.'