THE GAP INITIATIVE
The Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) Initiative at Virginia Tech leverages partnerships, innovation, policy, and analysis to ensure every farmer has access to every proven tool to improve productivity.
The Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) Initiative at Virginia Tech mobilizes and advocates for action and investment to accelerate agricultural productivity growth at all scales of production to create returns to farmers, society, the economy, and the environment.
The GAP Report® is the heart of the GAP Initiative. This annually produced report is the premier source for productivity data, analysis, and policy recommendations that inspire action.
The GAP Initiative
The Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) Initiative at Virginia Tech leverages partnerships, innovation, policy, and analysis to ensure every farmer has access to every proven tool to improve productivity.
Agricultural productivity is the key to a sustainable future.
The Vision
The GAP Initiative at Virginia Tech desires that every farmer has access to every proven tool for creating sustainable agricultural productivity growth.
The Mission
To mobilize and advocate for action and investment to accelerate agricultural productivity growth at all scales of production to create returns to farmers, society, the economy, and the environment.
A Brief History
Virginia Tech took over the responsibility for producing the Global Agricultural Productivity Report® (GAP Report®) in 2019. It was created by the Global Harvest Initiative (GHI), a non-profit founded in 2010 to look at what production agriculture would have to achieve to keep pace with a growing global population.
“The Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) is well positioned to serve as a host for the report given the breadth of its programs in food, agriculture, and nutrition and its emphasis on addressing global food security issues,” said Tim Sands, president of Virginia Tech. “The college’s initiative to grow public-private partnerships, its investment in international programs, and the new Innovation Campus in Alexandria, Virginia, all benefit the GAP Report and its stakeholders.”
The GAP Report benefits from the research and relationships of CALS — as well other research initiatives and institutes across the university, including the USAID Integrated Pest Management Innovation Lab and the Center for Agricultural Trade.
The report aligns with the mission of Virginia Tech’s CALS Global Programs Office (CALS Global), a unit within the college that was formed in 2016 with the goal of building partnerships, creating new opportunities, and empowering success while serving globally. The GAP Report is produced by CALS Global under the leadership of Dr. Tom Thompson, the college’s associate dean and director of global programs. Find out more about the GAP Initiative’s leadership team here.
The 2023 GAP Report
Every Farmer, Every Tool
How can we achieve sustainable agricultural productivity growth?
Every Farmer, Every Tool
2023 GAP Report Highlights
Dive deeper into the GAP Report
Video & Data Resources
Discover the most recent data around global agricultural productivity, including the interactive Total Factory Productivity map, video essays from our partners, animated breakdowns, and past GAP Report launch events in our curated resource library.
Discover the most recent data around global agricultural productivity, including the interactive Total Factory Productivity map, video essays from our partners, animated breakdowns, and past GAP Report launch events in our curated resource library.
Partner with the GAP Initiative
Your organization can tap into our network of experts and collaborators and be a part of food security solutions that will change the world.
Learn MoreGAP Initiative and Report Supporting Partners
The GAP Report is supported by investments from the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. GAP Report Supporting Partners provide financial support for the GAP Report and related activities. They offer an important perspective on critical issues facing agricultural systems in the US and around the world.
GAP Report Technical Partners
Our work is enhanced by contributions from Technical Partners who share their knowledge and experience in agriculture, conservation, nutrition and the needs of small-scale farmers.
Contribute to the GAP Initiative
Individual gifts in support the GAP Initiative’s work can be made through the Virginia Tech giving website. One-time or monthly gifts can be made through the website. For information on giving to the GAP Initiative, contact Emily Wong, Director of Development for the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, at ewong03@vt.edu.