Yemeni women and girls queue for food distributed by a local charity in Sana'a, Yemen, which is experiencing a humanitarian crisis and famine after four years of conflict, May 18, 2019. /VCG Photo
Too much food, not enough food, or not enough of the right kind of food: what we eat and how much we eat have become major concerns worldwide, and the climate crisis is only making things worse.
On the occasion of World Food Day, celebrated every October 16, UN agencies and aid organizations are raising the alarm about malnutrition, obesity and the need to transform our food production chains.
Not enough
Eradicating hunger by 2030 is one of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, but one ninth of the world's population still goes hungry every year.
Some 820 million people did not have enough to eat in 2018, according to an annual report on "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World" compiled by several UN agencies.
Worse even, the number has been steadily going up since 2015 after falling for over a decade – especially in regions like Africa and Latin America, but also in high-income countries in Europe or North America.
Too much
At the other end of the spectrum, about two billion adults – 39 percent of the world's total – are overweight or obese. And the same goes for almost one fifth of all children between the ages of five and 19.
A Beyond Meat burger is displayed at a Carl's Jr. restaurant in San Francisco, U.S., June 10, 2019. /VCG Photo
At both extremes, poverty is involved, with people struggling to find food or get access to fresh and healthy products.
The effects of undernourishment are well known: stunting, wasting, low birthweight in babies leading to lifelong health problems and, in extreme cases, death.
But being overweight and obesity – common causes of cancer, diabetes or cardiovascular disease – are even more deadly, according to the World Health Organization. Research has estimated they contribute to some four million deaths per year.
Why?
Conflict and natural disasters have long impacted food supplies. But increasingly, economic tensions and slowing growth have exacerbated food insecurity even in middle-income countries.
And the climate emergency – which has shot to the top of global agendas lately – is likely to make things worse, with higher temperatures leading to drought, soil erosion and water scarcity, and extreme weather wiping out crops and arable land, as noted in a recent IPCC special report on Climate Change and Land.
The right balance
As a result, UN agencies have revised their calls for action this year.
In a video address ahead of October 16, Qu Dongyu, director-general of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said that while eliminating hunger remained a top priority, the goal for World Food Day 2019 was "to make healthy and sustainable diets accessible and affordable to everyone."
Vegetables in a supermarket in Guangzhou, China, September 12, 2019. /VCG Photo
UN chief Antonio Guterres called "for a world where nutritious food is available and affordable for everyone, everywhere," adding that not just hunger but "unhealthy diets present an enormous risk of disease and death."
"It is time to change how we produce and consume food," he urged.
What can be done?
"Transforming food systems," as Guterres put it, will require concerted efforts by everyone: from farmers diversifying their crops and governments passing new food standards and regulations, to researchers developing new technology, private companies pushing healthier options and consumers themselves making wiser decisions about what goes on their plate, Qu said.
Plant-based burgers are all the rage at the moment but just eating fresh, local and sustainably sourced products, rather than imported or highly processed foods, and limiting food waste are also steps in the right direction and will help counter climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, about one third of all food produced for humans is wasted or lost every year, according to the UN.
The Food Sharing Hub, a "rescued food" shop in Edinburgh, Scotland, encourages consumers not to throw away food, January 25, 2019. /VCG Photo
Further FAO recommendations for consumers and producers alike include avoiding excessive packaging, making more sustainable use of natural resources, using technology to produce food more efficiently, improving transportation and storage to prevent food loss, as well as raising awareness about nutrition and how food is produced.
Tackling the problem involves "everyone along the chain from farm to fork," noted Corinne Woods, chief marketing officer for the UN's World Food Programme (WFP). "Food waste is a global issue but everyone can play their part in building a sustainable solution."
Check your fridge
The FAO will host a World Food Day event in Rome on Wednesday, attended by government leaders.
Alongside the UN's #ZeroHunger push – part of its Sustainable Development Goals – the WFP has also launched a #StopTheWaste program, to convince consumers to take a closer look inside their fridge and not discard old or seemingly spoiled products that are still perfectly safe to eat.
Around the world, schools, supermarkets and local communities are also organizing discussions, exhibits, film screenings, and, appropriately, themed dinners, to celebrate and raise awareness about World Food Day.