Why the global soil shortage threatens food, medicine and the climate

Black gold can be found in the soil.

Within 60 years, the United Nations predicted catastrophic loss.

Jo Handelsman, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told CNBC that there are places that have already lost all of their soil.

According to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, soil degradation could cost the world $23 trillion in lost food, income and services.

The secretary of the Global Soil Partnership and Land and Water Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said that soil erosion is the number one soil threat.

The equivalent of removing millions of acres of farmland is the result of soil erosion according to the U.N.

The world's food supply, clean drinking water, and biodiversity are at risk.

Climate change can be mitigated with the help of soil.

According to the Columbia Climate School, the amount of carbon in the earth's atmosphere and in the soil are four times and three times greater, respectively.

The soil is home to 25% of the planet's biodiversity. According to the chief scientist at the Rodale Institute, each gram of soil contains millions of cells ofbacteria and fungi.

Modern organic agriculture was started at the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, Pennsylvania.

Improving and rebuilding soil health is one of the things we do here. A farming system trial has been going on for over four decades. It is a side-by-side comparison of organic and conventional crop systems.

According to the research, organic agriculture can yield up to 40% higher during a dry spell and can earn farmers more money.

How could that happen? According to the Rodale Institute, it all begins with the soil.

All aspects of the soil, chemical, physical andbiological should be in a perfect state to be able to produce healthy food for us.

The world relies on soil for almost all of its food production. That is just the beginning of its significance.

The good news is that we know how to do it, according to a research soil scientist.

We are facing a silent soil crisis, how soil can be saved, and what that means for the world in the video above.