Introduction
One of the most significant challenges currently facing humankind is to provide enough food, for an active healthy lifestyle, to a population which will probably rise beyond 9 billion within the next 30 to 40 years. The biggest challenges we face are climate change and a diminishing supply of essential resources for crop production (land, water, fertilisers, energy, labour). The provision of these resources must be sustained while minimising any deleterious environmental effects of food production systems.
Our programme will equip you with the specialist skills and knowledge to engage with the challenges of making and supplying enough food to sustain an active healthy lifestyle for a growing population.
Increasing affluence means that people want to eat more and they want to eat differently, often aspiring to a more meat-rich and resource-demanding diet. More and more people now live in cities and these social changes challenge those committed to supplying more good quality food to more people.
While food production can determine food access and availability, more people can be adequately fed if food is distributed more equitably and less food is wasted. While subsistence farmers in less developed countries have some control over their own food provision, most of us live in a globally networked food system, where external shocks (eg. pandemics) can have dramatic local effects.
Recognising the importance of food provision in a sustainable way, since 2015 Lancaster University, in partnership with Waitrose, has developed this online postgraduate training programme at Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert), Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and Master's (MSc) levels.
Our programme is delivered online, with all materials supplied to allow you to work at your own pace within a full-time programme.
Who is the course for?
Our online programme is tailored to those around the world who aspire to work in food and farming policy, practice and research, or those that already do so. The course will equip you for careers in agriculture, rural industries, the food industry, governmental agencies, research, or enhance your professional development if you are already employed in these sectors.
It is currently offered full-time for new students and will appeal to graduates with backgrounds in biological sciences, environmental sciences, geography, agriculture, horticulture, agronomy, agri-food, food sciences, or similar degrees. However, those with other degrees (eg. business) have also graduated from our programme, and we recognise those with prior relevant learning and experience - you don’t necessarily need a degree to apply!
Why study with us?
- Five years’ experience of a Top 10 UK university in delivering this online programme
- Flexible online delivery enables you to progress to a level to suit you – PGCert, PGDip or MSc
- Work through the materials at your own pace online with online guidance from expert tutors, meaning you don’t need to relocate to undertake this course
- Gain technical skills and knowledge that can be directly applied to a wide range of roles and disciplines in the food industry
- Subject to any local covid-19 restrictions, meet your fellow students and network at optional short workshops, or online discussions
- Gain a thorough grounding in statistics, data collection and analysis (PGDip & MSc only)
- Develop your research skills through a bespoke, often industry-focused, dissertation project (MSc only)
- Choose from a wide range of specialist modules that illuminate the factors impacting upon food security and environmental effects on food production
- Analyse the factors that influence who eats what and discuss innovations that can help address shortcomings in the global food system