This article points out the challenges to food security and agriculture and reveals how ESD plays an important role in education for sustainable agriculture. The current global financial turmoil is exacerbating concerns about rising food and fuel costs. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has termed this ‘the new face of hunger'. More than 850 million people are starving and the food crisis is even threatening the stability of already fragile democracies like Afghanistan. The dilemma between affluence and poverty is distinct taken into consideration that the main problem is not the lack of food, but the surge of food prices which makes basic sustenance unaffordable for millions.<BR>At the same time the world population continues to grow. Food production needs to rise by 50% by the year 2030 to meet the needs of population growth and changes in consumption patterns. The tendency is clear: the more countries have economic development, the more they consume animal protein. However, meat production is a major source of greenhouse gases and the typical land use attached to it is generally inefficient and prone to cause soil degradation. Resource use related to agriculture and food production is highly unsustainable.<BR>Agriculture is still the most common occupation globally. Thus attention is needed in linking education and food security. Knowledge of the current state can lead to empowerment of people to take responsibility for their actions which is one of the primary aims of ESD. The thrusts of the ESD are providing and improving quality basic education, re-orienting existing education programmes, building public understanding and awareness and providing practical training. ESD brings sustainable issues to the forefront, and uses that perspective to address educational change which enables everyone to adapt behaviours and make informed decisions that can contribute to a sustainable future. ESD aims to provide all learners with support to develop skills to adapt to changing food security needs in their local context—for example, to seek out innovative farming methods and change consumption patterns.<BR>Today's agricultural and trade practices are failing to feed the poor and have detrimental effects on the environment. Current cultivation of ‘cash crops’ such as cotton and coffee for export purposes contribute to the prevalence of food insecurity and create a strain on the ecosystem. These practices need to be re-considered with the holistic approach to education and development that ESD advocates. It seeks to enable individuals to view issues of food security as connected to their personal choices. For example through incorporating Education for Sustainable Development in vocational education programmes and agricultural practices, farmers can be transformed into ‘farmers of tomorrow’ who are better able to safeguard our ecosystems and preserve them for future generations. The way to this is exchanges in expertise between indigenous knowledge and future farmers. Community knowledge of local contexts must be integrated into sustainable approaches in order to address local needs and opportunities for farmers on maximizing agricultural production on a larger scale.