Global Food Insecurity: A Threat to Sustainable Development

This article discusses the challenges of food security, including rising population, income inequality, water shortage, climate change, and food production challenges. It highlights the need for emergency strategies that enhance quality production strategies for improved living. The article also emphasizes the importance of sustainable development and the need for investment in research and technology to address problems affecting agriculture. The article concludes that food security is a threat to sustainable development and requires a multilateral approach to find solutions.

Is Global Food Insecurity a Threat?
Food Security
13th May 2018

Introduction
Whenever we get hungry, the first thing that comes to mind is food. It is so easy to grab a snack
or find something to eat if you have the resources. All you have to do is to get in the kitchen and
have it prepared or you walk into a restaurant and go through the menu. Nevertheless, what
would you do if you got hungry, had the money but there was no food? Imagine seven billion
people struggling to survive on the meagre world resources. With an increasing world population
and diminishing world resources, it is difficult to tell how long the current food resources will
last.
“Imagine all the food mankind has produced over the past 8000 years. Now consider that we
need to produce that same amount again-but in just the next 40 years, if we are to feed our
growing and hungry world” (Global Harvest Initiative, 2012).
Those are the words spoken by Unilever CEO Paul Polman. Sustainable development is a reality
today more than ever before. In food security, challenges arising indicate the need to adopt
emergency strategies that enhance quality production strategies for improved living.
Case Discussion
Food security is a multi-sectorial phenomenon that affects governments, civil societies, the
business and intergovernmental organization (Thompson, 2012). This makes a multilateral
approach to the food insecurity challenge, which calls for solutions from different levels. Food,
water and air are the most critical factors affecting human life. Without food, people die of
starvation. Lack of water makes it hard for food to grow. Agricultural production thrives in clean
air with no pollution. The food production cycle revolves around Food security challenges
include:
 Rising population
 Income inequality
 Water shortage
 Climate change
 Food production challenges (The Economist, 2014)

One loaf of bread could last a single person for days. However, a family made up of parents and
children need a fresh loaf every day. When the world has more people, access to food resources
becomes a challenge. Food deficiencies arise because of many reasons. One of these is food
insecurity caused by limited resources. Every day in Africa, we read about people dying of
hunger. The growing population in Asia contributes to food insecurity because of the production
challenges. This is evident in India where there is a huge gap between the poor and rich. High
population threatens food security because of the high poverty levels. Whether a region is
developing, emerging or under developed, the food insecurity challenge is a threat to everyone.
Increased population is not the main problem, uncontrolled population is. When population
planning is uncontrollable, it becomes unsustainable. This means that the quality of life
diminishes and people struggle for the meagre resources. Africa’s poor people lack access to
food production. They also face economic challenges, which prevent food security.
The connection between food security and unequal income levels is obvious. Imagine one family
living on one meal for days because they have no choice. They cannot afford a better meal. This
lack of choices caused by poor income options limits the people’s ability to purchase food.
Minority groups in the US have a higher tendency to become obese because of limited diet
choices. Healthy, natural and tasty fruits and vegetable continue to become scarce. This rare
resource is what people need in order to grow healthy (Brown, 2013). As more people move
from rural areas to the urban centers for work, economic activities shift from being agricultural
to industry based ones hence the income inequality. Population increase is highest in the urban
centers. Food security threatens local and urban areas. Poor people lack access to basic resources
such as food. Women, children and minority groups suffer this effect. Consequences of income
inequality includes poor nutrition, which culminates in bad health. Consumption trends change
as income levels in the urban areas change. Sometimes this creates inequalities because urban
centers experience an influx of people. Unequal distribution of resources may occur when
industries develop in rural agricultural land, which means less food production to meet the
growing urban needs.

Despite improved innovation, food production remains low. Best practices in food production
include the use of advanced technology tools and equipment in farming, food processing and
investment. Governments in developed countries like Japan have made investments in new food
production platforms like green houses and rooftop gardens. This is a concern shared by other
countries like UAE where agricultural entrepreneurship is sharp. Improvements in the
agricultural industry bring positive changes in global nutrition, human rights, environmental
concerns, security and sustainable development. Partners support modern innovation practices
through country-based programs, industry specific initiatives, integrated solutions and technical
support systems. That is why impact assessment research on food security has become common.
A growing population needs food security in order to feel safe. Populous countries like China,
India, and Nigeria contend with a constrained future because of the reality of the food security
threat. Most developed countries like Qatar strive to gain independence in food security through
irrigation, new technology and infrastructural development (Brown, 2013).
Food production challenges such as climate change remain unresolved. The global development
efforts features a multidisciplinary plan, which seeks to involve all stakeholders. Food issues
affect everyone, young and old. Complication in food production provide an opportunity for
investment into research and technology on problems affecting agriculture such as low crop
yields, reduced water production and changes in rainfall or soil composition. Government
organizations seek the benefit of its citizens and when this becomes unmanageable, international
agencies such as FAO and WFP step in as social development partners. The process of finding
solutions to this problem remains an unending quest.

References
Brown, L. (2013, October 15). Global food security: 10 challenges. The Globalist. Retrieved
From: https://www.theglobalist.com/global-food-security-10-challenges/
Global Harvest Initiative. (2012, June 12). Notable food security quotes from Rio +20 and G20
conferences. Global Harvest Initiative. Retrieved From:
http://www.globalharvestinitiative.org/2012/06/notable-food-security-quotes-from-the-rio20-
and-g20-conferences/
The Economist. (2014, February 22). How to keep stomachs full, Gulf Arabs are debating how
best to feed themselves. The Economist. Retrieved from
https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21596978-gulf-arabs-are-debating-
how-best-feed-themselves-how-keep-stomachs-full
Thompson, S. (2012, September 21). Four threats to global food security, and what we can do
about them. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/four-threats-to-
global-food-security-and-what-we-can-do-about-them-6567