Since around 1980, the population of Papua New Guinea (PNG) has been growing at an average rate of 2.7% per annum — doubling about every 25 years. People in rural areas grow 85% of the food they consume, growing it on their own land, using their own labour. Twelve per cent of rural people eat sago as their staple food (Bourke and Allen 2009). This In Brief describes PhD research from the University of PNG that investigates whether sago production can be increased to meet the food demands of a rapidly growing population.

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Food Security in the Torricelli Foothills of Papua New Guinea: Can Sago Continue to Sustain the Increasing Population? (PDF)	1.08 MB