Food Security最新文献

Africa is the poorest continent, with the fastest population growth, the most acute food shortages, and overfishing. Meeting rising food demand while preserving sustainable production is challenging. We evaluated the full fishery supply chain over the previous 70 years in search of sustainable growth paths, from fish resource status and fishery production to trade and human consumption. Our data show that Africa had the lowest per capita fish consumption of any continent in 2017, with international imports accounting for 35% of this low fish consumption. Meanwhile, foreign vessels fish legally or illegally in African waters, landing 3.1 million tonnes of fish outside of Africa each year. Current fishing practises have resulted in 40% of fish populations being overexploited, causing a loss of 2 million tonnes of fish production per year. Improved management can reduce non-trade fish outflows from foreign vessels fishing and restore overfished stocks to maximum sustainable levels, increasing Africa's fish consumption by 42% and the commercial value of marine fisheries by 53%. Aside from food supply and economic benefits, there are also various social and environmental benefits including job opportunities, support for local livelihoods, and environmental health. These findings can help inform policy and the development of long-term sustainable solutions to challenges in Africa such as overfishing, low fish consumption, hunger, and poverty.

High reliance on food imports, unbalanced diets, limited cultivable land, scarce fresh water resources and remoteness are typical food security constraints for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Calls for evidence-based food policy interventions are, therefore, justified. Yet, SIDS studies on food security are often outdated, focus on one country and use exclusive data and dedicated methodologies that cannot be applied elsewhere. This study standardized its methodology to assess availability of food groups and micronutrients at a SIDS-wide level. We use the latest release from FAO’s harmonized Food Balance Sheets and improve actual intake by correcting for food waste and lower micronutrient thresholds for under-fives. We make results interpretable with geo-visualization techniques and infographics that map food group and micronutrient availability per country against required needs. A great share of countries (94%) fails to meet food group requirements; 43% does not meet the requirement of five or more of the eight food groups. None of the SIDS meet the required doses for micronutrients and only 14% meets requirements of 13 or 14 of the 15 micronutrients, yet, 31% of the SIDS misses 6 to 8 micronutrients. Overweight prevalence is closely correlated to food group availability while stunting can be largely explained by income level. The findings prioritize policy actions by identifying absence of dietary diversity. The approach is adequate and cost-efficient based on existing databases that are regularly updated. Timeliness and country coverage of SIDS in some international databases need serious improvement.

Milk is highly perishable and can be a conduit for the transmission of zoonotic foodborne pathogens. This cross-sectional survey involving 159 farming households and 18 participant observations in participating farms was undertaken in Addis Ababa and surrounding areas in Oromia, Ethiopia to assess the adoption of food safety measures in smallholder farms. Adoption of food safety measures at the farm level influences milk quality and safety across the entire milk value chain, from “grass to glass”. This study considered the adoption of 36 different food safety measures (FSM) including animal health, milking hygiene, hygienic milk storage, and hygienic milking premises. A weighted food safety index (FSI, ranging from 0 to 100) was calculated for each household based on FSM adopted. Ordinary Least Squares linear regression was used to quantify the factors of FSM adoption by smallholder farmers. The overall food safety index ranged between 59.97—60.75. A majority of farmers may be classified as moderate adopters of FSM (index ranging between 30–70%). Farm and farmers’ characteristics such as herd size, farmer’s education level, farmer’s expertise in dairying, and participation of the farm in the formal milk value- chain, were shown to positively influence the level of adoption of FSM. Low farm-level adoption of FSM has food safety and public health implications as it can lead to milk contamination and, therefore, expose consumers to foodborne diseases. There is an imperative for policymakers to design and implement policies and intervention strategies that lead to increased farmer training related to livestock production and awareness of the important role that FSM adoption can play in improving food safety and public health.

The current diet structure of Chinese residents poses significant challenges to both health and the environment. Accordingly, in this study, a diet structure optimization model was developed to simulate the diet structure of urban and rural residents in four regions of China, taking into account nutritional needs and environmental sustainability for optimization. The results showed that by optimization based on nutrition alone, nutrient adequacy ratios could increase by 2.8% on average, narrowing regional disparities. Incorporating environmental sustainability slightly reduced nutritional improvements but significantly lowered carbon emissions, water usage, and ecological footprints by 2.9%, 6.9%, and 2.4%, respectively. By simulating the optimization of diet structure, the Qinghai-Tibet region showed potential for nutrient enhancement, whereas the southern and northern regions had opportunities for environmental impact mitigation. This study highlights the significance of transitioning towards a sustainable diet structure that enhances nutritional levels while prioritizing individual and environmental well-being and emphasizes the urgent need for change. It also offers targeted recommendations for diet structures in different regions of China, thereby providing invaluable references for policymakers and other countries striving to establish sustainable and balanced diets.

Emergency cash transfers provide essential life support to vulnerable households affected by a crisis, including those living in chronic poverty. So far, project life cycles, nutrition, and asset-related thresholds have informed the decision of when beneficiaries switch from emergency cash transfers to an income-generating livelihoods program. However, factors beyond material poverty influence the likelihood of sustained improvements in well-being during such changes. We argue that a food systems perspective with additional metrics helps provide targeted transition support to beneficiaries. Based on insights gained from an Urban Safety Net in Mogadishu, Somalia, we suggest a multi-level framework to conceptualise the transition readiness of internally displaced people and poor host communities. Based on this framework, we make recommendations for improving safety net programming.

Multiple crises and challenges in the food sector are driving a rising need for innovative food production methods that could provide a growing urban population with high-quality, sustainable and healthy food while strengthening the resilience of food systems. Controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) in urban areas has been proposed as one possible pathway to address these demands. Despite its various potential benefits, CEA is still in a conceptual or experimental stage and there has been less research that focuses on the specificities of urban areas where it could be implemented. Using the Urban Food Production Innovation System (UFoPrInS) concept, this paper analyses the urban contexts and enabling and impeding factors for implementing CEA in three contrasting locations: London, Nairobi and Singapore. Based on document analysis and semi-structured expert interviews, our findings show that Singapore is a favourable location because public policies support the implementation of CEA to reduce food import dependency and enhance the resilience of food supply. In London, high food import dependency is increasingly seen as problematic, but the implementation of CEA has been hampered by other policy priorities. In Nairobi, where over half of the population lives in informal settlements without adequate food, water and sanitation, CEA is unlikely to make an economically efficient contribution to food security. We conclude that the implementation of CEA might be suitable in locations with ample capital and knowledge, stable political, social, and infrastructure conditions, and limited space, where value can be linked to hospitality and tourism, supported by positive pricing for resource savings.

Abstract

Empowering smallholder farmers in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) and improving their livelihood is a critical goal for poverty reduction. To achieve this, agricultural commercialization can play an important role. However, a prerequisite to achieving agricultural commercialization is access and control of stable irrigation. This study revisits empirically the relationship between groundwater irrigation and crop commercialization. It also analyses the underlying mechanisms of how groundwater affects crop commercialization through on-farm production diversity. Studying the effects of groundwater irrigation on crop commercialization is essential for comprehending the trade-off between agricultural benefits and the environmental costs of groundwater irrigation. Geospatial and remote sensing information, combined with primary household data from small-scale farmers in eastern India, are employed in conjunction with an instrumental variable technique and a 3SLS simultaneous equation model for the analysis. The results suggest that small-scale farmers in eastern India experience enhanced crop commercialization when they have access to groundwater irrigation. Furthermore, the study suggests that the utilization of groundwater irrigation indirectly promotes crop commercialization by incentivizing farmers to diversify their production system.

Global agricultural production has risen substantially in recent decades and needs to rise further to meet the ever-growing food demand. While higher production can be directly attributed to agricultural expansion and intensification, the underlying factors behind the changes in cultivated areas and yields can be complicated and have not been well understood. China has dramatically increased its food production in past decades, especially during the initial approximately 30 years following the commencement of the rural reform in the late 1970s. The agricultural land use, including cropland areas, the composition of different crops and their spatial distributions, and crop yields have experienced substantial changes. In this research, we quantitatively analysed the changes in the harvested areas and yields of the four most widely cultivated crops in China (rice, wheat, maize, and soybean) at the county level from 1980 to 2011. We used spatial panel regressions to quantify the determinants of the observed changes in harvested area and yields for the major cultivation region of each of the four crops. Results showed that growth in population, gross domestic product, and urbanisation are positively associated with harvested areas. Higher usage of machinery and fertiliser inputs increased yields of the three cereal crops, while the harvested area of soybean decreased, particularly after China’s accession to the WTO. Our findings reveal how domestic urbanisation and changes in consumption patterns, coupled with the rising globalisation of agricultural markets, shaped China’s agricultural production and land use over the three decades. These insights shed light on the determinants of long-term agricultural dynamics and thus inform evidence-based decision-making.

Food security at the WTO remains one of the significant unaddressed demands of the developing country members. The Agreement on Agriculture has restricted the flexibility of the developing country members to administer price support backed public stockholding programmes for food security purposes, mainly due to the Amber box limit and the methodology for calculating market price support. Despite many deliberations and Ministerial mandates, no concrete solution has been found. The only option available to the developing country members is the Bali Decision on public stockholding, which is limited in product and programme coverage. For a permanent solution, this paper examines the options of addressing the flaws in the market price support calculation methodology through (a) consideration of inflation, (b) moving external reference price, (c) notifying in stronger currency, and (d) increasing the de minimis limit. Further, a solution based on the Bali peace clause has also been analysed. The paper finds that a ‘one glove fits all’ is not an appropriate approach for a permanent solution. Instead, multiple options or a combination of options should be made available according to the agricultural conditionalities of the members.

Abstract

Improving the agricultural productivity and welfare of rural farming households is important for many governments, especially in low- and middle-income countries like Nigeria, where agriculture plays an important role in the economy. Increasing access to agricultural extension is often suggested as a way to raise farmer productivity and incomes. However, empirical estimations of the causal impact of agricultural extension services in Nigeria are few, especially those that address internal and external validity concerns. Improved estimation of the effectiveness of agricultural extension can support evidence-informed decision-making by agricultural policymakers. In this study we used three waves of the Nigerian General Household Survey to advance understanding of the factors associated with farmers’ use of agricultural extension services, and to examine how receiving extension support might improve welfare among rural farm households in Nigeria. Through random effects regression with endogenous treatment effects, we found that asset ownership, use of inorganic fertiliser, and access to credit were positively associated with the use of extension services. We also found positive associations between use of extension services and household food security and assets. Receiving agricultural extension service was associated with a 16% reduction in food insecurity and a 64% increase in household assets. Further disaggregating extension services by the type of advice obtained showed positive associations with welfare outcomes for households that received advice on new seeds and fertiliser, but mixed results for those who received advice on animal care and marketing. Receiving advice on new seed varieties and fertilisers was associated with a 12–15% reduction in food insecurity and a 92–113% increase in household assets. Our findings add to the body of evidence that suggests enhancing farmers’ access to extension can improve the welfare of farmers. Government policy needs to consider factors that limit or promote farmers’ access to agricultural extension services, so that Nigerian farmers can equitably benefit from the potential welfare gains associated with agricultural extension.