With global population expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, our agricultural systems are facing enormous challenges to produce enough food for all who will need it. Research and education are the best tools available to address that challenge, as sustainable intensification will be needed to boost agricultural production on a limited supply of arable land. To protect our natural resources and provide a nutritious diet for all, we will need to work on both securing enough food and ensuring that the food supply promotes life-long health. Those involved in nutrition and food safety understand that a food that is not safe is not nutritious. And we need to consider the supply chain from farm to table. Technologies can be helpful in reducing the estimated 40 percent of crops that are lost pre- and post-harvest to rodents and rot. Scientists around the globe are making a priority of current research into crop diseases such as the wheat pathogen UG99, which threatens a key staple of many countries’ diets. Protecting our food supply requires ongoing research into both plant and animal diseases that could, in a short period of time, be devastating. Just as new breeds of disease-resistant plants are developed, new diseases emerge that require new solutions. Both plant and animal specific as well as zoonotic pathogens are constantly evolving, and research is critical to staying ahead of the threat pathogens pose to crops, food animals and humans.