Food security
Author: : Milla McLachlan, Director, Southern Africa Food Lab andStellenbosch University Food Security Initiative.
( Article Type: Opinion )
Food security exists when people everywhere are able to obtain enough, safe, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food for a healthy and productive life, and are not at risk of losing such access. Food security is therefore not just about producing enough staple foods, although this has often been the primary focus; it is also about ensuring the optimal functioning of the entire food value chain, including processing, storage, distribution, marketing, consumption and waste management. Seen from the perspective of consumers, food security also means that households have the means to obtain food in a dignified and ethical manner; have the knowledge and ability to make responsible food choices and are free of concern about where their next meal will come from.
Thus, since food security became a topic of international policy debate and global commitments during the 1970’s, the concept has progressively broadened to encompass food availability through production and trade; value chain activities from ‘farm to fork;’ as well as access issues, including incomes, on- and off- farm employment and wage rates; and social protection measures. It also deals with the utilization of food, diet quality and food safety. For some people, food insecurity is temporary, a consequence of an event such as crop failure, illness or job loss. For others, it is a chronic condition, due to persistent poverty and structural problems in the economy. Food insecurity can be both cause and consequence of civil strife and wars, as demonstrated by recent food riots in North African countries and famine in Southern Somalia. The right to food is enshrined in international and national conventions and treatise, which means that food security is also a human rights issue.
Food security requires a sustainable and equitable
food system.
Feeding the world’s growing population sustainably and equitably is one of the major challenges of the 21st century. It is increasingly recognized that the food system through which we strive to achieve food security for current generations relies heavily on extractive approaches that deplete the soil, drain freshwater resources, pollute the air, and reduce biodiversity. This ‘mining’ has been highly productive, contributing to a decline in the proportion of hungry people in the world, but its limits are now becoming evident and could leave future generations vulnerable to greater food insecurity.
Furthermore, the food system does not serve current populations very well: globally, almost one billion people are still hungry, and even more experience hidden hunger due to micronutrient deficiencies. In South Africa, there is no agreed measure of food insecurity, but it is safe to say that large numbers of people are considered vulnerable to food insecurity, with estimates ranging from one in ten to one in 2 households experiencing hunger. This means that at least 4 million South Africans are at risk of hunger. Woman-headed households, particularly in remote rural areas and informal settlements are particularly at risk. Nutritional surveys indicated that one in five young children are stunted due to chronic malnutrition. At the same time, poor diets contribute significantly to the rising epidemic of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease in both rich and poor nations. Although the global food system currently produces enough food to meet the overall demand, the system is fragile, due to resource depletion, declining biodiversity, climate change and adverse weather events, and years of neglect of agriculture by investors, decision-makers and research bodies . For example, nutrients essential for food production, notably phosphorus and nitrogen, are increasingly scarce, and may be depleted within the century, unless innovative recycling strategies are implemented. The rising demand for biofuels, driven substantially by higher fuel prices and concerns about fossil fuel depletion impacts directly on the availability of land for food and fodder crop production, and contributed to recent food price spikes.
Food price volatility and higher food prices affect poor people in particular, because they spend as much as 70% of their income on food. Most poor people, even smallholder farmers, consume more food than they produce themselves. So, while higher producer prices benefit smallholder farmers and workers employed in the food sector, such increased consumer prices negatively impact a far larger number of poor people. It is estimated that the food price crisis of 2008 plunged 110 million vulnerable people into poverty and added 44 million people to the ranks of food insecure people worldwide. Pregnant and lactating women, young children, and already hungry people are particularly hard hit by rising food prices. According to the World Bank in 2008, in many countries infant and young child mortality rates could increase between 5 and 25% due to the food crisis. Food price volatility is a politically sensitive topic, and the causes are complex, interrelated, and hotly debated among economists. In addition to the rising demand for biofuels, it is generally agreed that export bans imposed during the crisis exacerbated the problem. There is less agreement regarding the impact of speculation in the futures market on food prices. Reduced growth in agricultural investment, coupled with lower public support for agriculture from national governments and international financial assistance, is also blamed for food price volatility. While international trade price trends are an important source of price volatility, domestic policy factors often play a greater role in price volatility and overall rise in prices at country level. Given the great variability in national food systems, each country needs to draw on international best practice to develop feasible solutions for its own conditions.
It appears that the long period of agricultural growth, premised on the availability of cheap natural resources (oil, water, biodiversity, phosphate and land) is ending. There is growing awareness of the cost of industrial agriculture in terms of pollution, depletion of freshwater aquifers and loss of biological diversity. These costs, combined with inequity in the food system require a reassessment of current food security strategies. We need to harness the best of human ingenuity to find new solutions, at global, national and local levels. Food security policy can also not be addressed in isolation. It must be reviewed and redesigned in conjunction with water and land policies, environmental, energy and urban design policies.
Creating an equitable and sustainable food system
Improve global governance of the food system: At international level, a report of an expert panel of the UN Committee on Food Security acknowledges that there is an urgent need to rethink and strengthen international governance systems for food, including developing flexible trade rules that take food security concerns into account and do not undermine local agricultural development and environmental sustainability; finding appropriate mechanisms to coordinate world food stocks; and improving information systems for decision making. Greater transparency in futures trading is also needed to prevent food price spikes due to speculation. Low income food deficit countries require dedicated attention.
Implement sustainable and equitable food security strategies
at country level. Governments at national and local level need to develop food security strategies appropriate for their specific conditions, encompassing the needs and opportunities of role players along the entire value chain, from ‘production to plate.’ This requires timely and relevant information systems and it must be done in collaboration with civil society and the private sector.
Value farmers and farming: At international and national levels, increased investment in agriculture and agriculture research is necessary to enable a smooth transition from a resource-intensive agricultural system that depletes natural resources, to a sustainable system that reduces the use of fossil fuel, decreases pollution, preserves agro-biodiversity; and cultivates new varieties for new conditions under climate change and resource scarcity. Innovative strategies to provide comprehensive support to small-holder farmers are urgently needed. Better communication between conventional agricultural researchers and experts in agro-ecology, support for local knowledge, and incentives for farmers to make the transition to more ecologically sustainable farming are also needed.
Waste not, want not. Food spoilage and waste is a major problem in the food system, with estimates of waste, due to post-harvest losses and consumer and food service waste as high as 30%. Globally, it is estimated that increased efficiency in the food chain, including recycling of waste from the human food system to feed animals, could provide the increased food needed for the estimated 3 billion people that will be added to the human population by 2050. Such innovations would also reduce pressure on biodiversity and water resources.
Eat lower down the food chain
A planet of 8 -10 billion people cannot all eat in the same wasteful and meat intensive way that a small minority (typically, the western ‘consumer class’) is currently eating. It is often suggested that increased demand for high-value added foods, including animal-source foods will inevitably rise as incomes rise. However, consumer education and other incentives can be used to moderate this effect, which will not only reduce the ecological footprint of the food system, but will also contribute to improved health. Currently, the full cost of the production of animal products in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, destruction of forests for fodder crop production and long distance transport of these products etc are not fully reflected in the retail prices of these foods.
Science and technology for food security.
In the quest to ensure food security for current and future generations, we need to draw on the best that science and technology can offer. A wide range of specialist scientists need to be involved, because there is no single solution for the complex challenges of food security. New technologies, including genetic modification, nanotechnology and cloning need to be explored and assessed rigorously with human and environmental safety as prime concerns. Many people have strong views for or against these technologies. These views should be respected, with an understanding on all sides of the limits to our knowledge of their long-term impact and the need to consider all options to find a constructive way forward.
Innovation in dialogue and action:
While much can and must be done using existing knowledge to redesign the food system for food security, more radical changes are also needed, requiring cutting-edge, multi-disciplinary research to inform innovation and policy redesign. The Southern Africa Food Lab (SAFL) (www.SouthernAfricafoodlab.org) is a multi-stakeholder initiative that brings together diverse role-players with influence in the regional food system to identify and pilot innovative means to help shift the system onto a more sustainable and equitable path. The Lab involves a range of different modes of learning to harness the energy for change in the group, and to prototype innovations that could have a ripple effect throughout the food system. The authors of the Foresight report (2011) argue that it is time to acknowledge that food is a ‘unique class of commodity.’ While economic theory and scientific principles remain paramount, culture, religion, and beliefs have a strong impact on food choices and must therefore be taken into consideration. For most people, food-related activities (gardening, cooking, eating) are their most immediate and regular connection with the earth, making it a significant vehicle for creating greater environmental awareness. We could take a cue from Mark Hulme, who suggests that we should frame ‘wicked problems’ such as food security and climate change, not so much as scientific puzzles for which we must find technical solutions, but rather as ideas that challenge us to think creatively and deeply about how we want to live together on this finite planet .
