GCRI · Food Nexus

Global subject programme

Priorities of Food Nexus shared across countries, and the methods used to compare them. A global programme is a shared agenda, not a claim of global offices.

02Scope

Global subject programme in Food Nexus.

  1. 01

    Agricultural production

    Crop, livestock and aquaculture production systems.

  2. 02

    Food security and access

    Availability, affordability and nutrition.

  3. 03

    Soil and land

    Soil health, land degradation and productivity.

  4. 04

    Food, water and energy

    Water and energy demand in production.

  5. 05

    Storage and cold chain

    Refrigeration, logistics and food safety.

  6. 06

    Agritech and innovation

    Precision agriculture, biotechnology and technology safeguards.

03Geography

Growing conditions in the Black Sea region.

Crop greenness, root-zone soil moisture and daytime surface heat over the Black Sea region, from NASA GIBS. Each layer carries its own date.

The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.

Layers 3

Growing conditions, for this page

About this layer
Evidence
Observed (clouds leave gaps)
Source
MODIS Terra NDVI (NASA LANCE)
Provider
NASA LANCE
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
daily; Satellite index; clouds leave gaps
Newest at build
2026-10-13
Resolution
about 250 m grid
Uncertainty
Satellite greenness index over the 8 days to the date shown; an indicator of crop and pasture condition, not a yield estimate or a food security warning.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map
About this layer
Evidence
Modelled
Source
SMAP Level 4 (NASA NSIDC DAAC)
Provider
NASA NSIDC DAAC
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
daily; Model with satellite data assimilated
Newest at build
2026-10-11
Resolution
about 2 km grid
Uncertainty
Model with satellite data assimilated. Satellite or model raster as the provider publishes it. Clouds, swath gaps and retrieval error leave gaps and noise; values are indicators, not measurements at a place.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map
About this layer
Evidence
Observed (persistent cloud still leaves gaps)
Source
VIIRS NOAA-20 Level 3, 8-day (NASA LANCE)
Provider
NASA LANCE
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
8-day; Satellite 8-day composite; persistent cloud still leaves gaps
Newest at build
2026-09-14
Resolution
about 1 km grid
Uncertainty
Satellite skin temperature of the ground over the 8 days ending on the date shown, a heat exposure indicator; not air temperature, heat index or a heat warning.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map
About this layer
Evidence
Observed
Source
VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance (NASA LANCE)
Provider
NASA LANCE
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
daily; Satellite image
Newest at build
2026-10-14
Resolution
about 250 m grid
Uncertainty
Satellite image. Satellite or model raster as the provider publishes it. Clouds, swath gaps and retrieval error leave gaps and noise; values are indicators, not measurements at a place.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map
About this layer
Evidence
Modelled (latest year GIBS publishes)
Source
MODIS Terra and Aqua land cover (MCD12Q1) (NASA LP DAAC)
Provider
NASA LP DAAC
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
yearly; Satellite classification; latest year GIBS publishes
Newest at build
2024-01-01
Resolution
about 500 m grid
Uncertainty
Satellite land cover classes for the year shown, including croplands; a classification with known errors, not a farm register.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map
About this layer
Evidence
Modelled (latest 8-day period GIBS publishes)
Source
MODIS Aqua GPP (MYD17) (NASA LP DAAC)
Provider
NASA LP DAAC
Licence
NASA open data
Vintage
8-day; Satellite-driven model; latest 8-day period GIBS publishes
Newest at build
2026-09-30
Resolution
about 500 m grid
Uncertainty
Model estimate of carbon taken up by plants over the 8-day period shown; an indicator of growth, not harvest or production.
Reached through
gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov, only after you allow the live map

Latest available

NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth

Loading the latest NASA imagery.

Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.

Growing conditions, framed on the Black Sea region.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date. They are indicators, not assessments of any place.

Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Blue Marble · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Natural Earth · NASA EONET · NASA JPL OPERA DIST-ALERT · NASA SMAPSources and licences

  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA’s Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA’s Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • MODIS land products (vegetation indices, gross primary production, land cover), NASA LP DAAC and LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • SMAP Level 4 soil moisture and snow mass, NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office; distributed by the NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center DAAC; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). Cite as: NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Spacesystems and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team (2019). ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003. doi:10.5067/ASTER/ASTGTM.003. NASA open data
  • Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
  • © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via NASA GIBS (coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). ODbL
  • Blue Marble, NASA Earth Observatory; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into hexagonal cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Context on the globe and flat map: coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names from NASA GIBS reference layers (OpenStreetMap data, ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors); Blue Marble imagery as an optional base; 3D terrain and the elevation read-out from the ASTER GDEM elevation colour index (5 m to 200 m classes, exaggerated for legibility). Boundaries are drawn as published and imply no position on any territory.
  • Live events: NASA Earth Observatory Natural Event Tracker (EONET); events are indicative and keep their original source links.
  • Live: NASA EONET Events are indicative, not authority warnings.
  • Observed (EO): NASA JPL OPERA DIST-ALERT (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026). We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA’s Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
  • Observed (EO): NASA SMAP. We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA’s Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
  • NASA GIBS: We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA’s Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
  • River discharge forecast, 30 days with range (GloFAS via Open-Meteo): Contains modified Copernicus Emergency Management Service information 2026; not a flood warning.
  • Past year, daily temperature (ERA5 via Open-Meteo): Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
  • Past year, daily temperature and sunshine (NASA POWER): These data were obtained from the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) POWER Project funded through the NASA Earth Science/Applied Science Program..
  • Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (https://open-meteo.com/), licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
  • Optional layers (13 sources in the layer list: live, forecast, observed and context) print their provider credit on the map and here when switched on; forecasts are model output and derived indices are estimates.

Layers and dates

  • Vegetation greenness (NDVI), rolling 8 days: MODIS Terra NDVI, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
  • Root-zone soil moisture, 0 to 100 cm: SMAP Level 4, NASA NSIDC DAAC · 11 Oct 2026
  • Land surface temperature, day, 8-day composite: VIIRS NOAA-20 Level 3, 8-day, NASA LANCE · 14 Sep 2026
  • True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
  • Land cover type (IGBP), yearly: MODIS Terra and Aqua land cover (MCD12Q1), NASA LP DAAC · 2024
  • Gross primary production, 8-day total: MODIS Aqua GPP (MYD17), NASA LP DAAC · 30 Sep 2026

04Global frame

The agreements and bodies a global food system programme reads against.

Process or bodyWhat it sets
FAO and FAOSTATStatistics, food balance sheets and technical standards
AMIS (G20 Agricultural Market Information System)Transparency on grain and oilseed markets and policy coordination
Committee on World Food SecurityPolicy guidance including the right-to-food guidelines
Codex AlimentariusInternational food safety standards
SDG 2Ending hunger and indicators on undernourishment and food insecurity experience

A global programme compares methods for outlooks and shock analysis; it does not forecast prices for trading purposes.

05Process

How the process runs.

Process

Global subject programme: Policy question to decision

A priority becomes a question, evidence, a decision case and a limited publication; the competent authority decides, never the programme.

  1. 01 Question

    1. 01A priority becomes a questionStep · Universe; national counterpartsA priority becomes a researchable question with stated criteria. National counterparts own the agenda, data and decisions.
    2. 03Scientific and stakeholder challengeStep · the Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI); the Global Risks Forum (GRF)Scientific and affected-stakeholder challenge informs mission selection and methods.
  2. 02 Evidence and options

    1. 04Assemble the evidenceStep · GCRIMethods, labelled data and uncertainty are assembled. Every finding carries one of nine evidence labels.
    2. 06Decision case with optionsRecord · The decision owner named in the caseA decision case binds owner, alternatives, evidence and deadline. It needs sensitivity and robustness.
  3. 03 Review and publication

    1. 07G6 · Publication authorisedGate · The Global Risks ForumGRF authorises publication of results that have passed scientific and editorial review. It cannot publish personal data.
    2. 08Publish with method, uncertainty and limitsRecord · ReportsFindings are published with their method, uncertainty and limits. An edition is published after review, not to a calendar.
  4. 04 Outside the programme

    1. 02Competent authority decidesDecision · The competent authorityThe authority or institution decides under its own rules. The authority decides; the programme informs.
    2. 05Action and implementation stay with the ownersActor · The relevant government, operator or licensed institutionDecisions and execution stay with the relevant government, operator or licensed institution. The programme records one only if shared.
  5. 05 Learning

    1. 09Corrections and lessons feed the next agendaStep · UniverseCorrections and lessons feed the next annual agenda. The findings of one year set the mandate of the next.

The Nexus cycle · Decision rights · The programme yearDesigned programme process, not a record of operation. No cycle has run and every programme is at service level R0. A gate is a programme decision, never a public-authority approval, certification or deployment authorisation.

06Status

Work is shown as its record stands.

Programmes are listed as exploring, forming, constituted, active, paused or archived. Country and regional entries appear when a programme record supports them.

07Sources

Where this page’s references lead.

The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.

08Questions

Questions and answers.

How do I propose work at this level?
Write to the contact form or a regional desk. A proposal receives a reference.
Food Nexus

Bring a method, a dataset or a question.

Information and enquiries are open today. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.

The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation

Science · evidence · measurement

Not for profit

Our articles, maps and twins are free to read and free to republish. Readers and partners keep it that way.

Partner with us

Who funds us

GCRI is a not-for-profit institution. To ask who funds a piece of work, use the funding questions form.

Independence

Editors and the expert reviewers named on each article decide what we publish. Funders and partners do not review or approve articles before publication.

Licence

Articles: CC BY 4.0. Figures, maps, twins and data: CC BY 4.0. Other uses: ask through the permissions form.