Food and nutrition insecurity remain pressing global challenges. Despite progress in some areas, millions of people around the world still struggle to access sufficient, safe, and nutritious food.
Many countries continue to grapple with recurring crises fuelled by climate change, high food prices, and conflict, all of which undermine access to the healthy, nutritious food that people need to thrive.
It is five years since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and five years away from the 2030 deadline for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.
At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership.
They recognise that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests
Monitoring food and nutrition security is a notoriously challenging task and one that often suffers from major data gaps, according to some experts at the World Bank who recently highlighted five alarming statistics that underscore the urgency of the global food and nutrition security situation and discuss how data innovations are pivotal in combating global hunger.
Last year’s ‘State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World’ report found that up to 733mn people globally suffered from malnutrition in 2023, an increase of 152mn since 2019.
This sharp rise underscores the escalating crisis of hunger and food insecurity worldwide.
The same report concluded that rising food prices and income inequality have led to 2.8bn people being unable to afford a healthy diet in 2022, contributing to what is termed as “hidden hunger.” Rising food prices disproportionately affect poorer households which spend a greater proportion of their incomes on food.
World food prices have declined from their 2022 peaks, but price dynamics will remain a key determinant of food security in 2025. During the sharp price rises in 2022, World Bank estimations found that a mere 1% rise in global food prices pushes an additional 10 million people into extreme poverty.
This underscores the vulnerability of low-income populations to even seemingly minor market fluctuations.
Last year, researchers at the University of Oxford and London School of Economics concluded that market failures and inefficiencies contribute to $10tn in hidden costs each year within the global food system.
These losses highlight the need for systemic changes to transform our food systems to be more efficient, equitable, and less wasteful so that we can sustainably feed people with nutritious food on a liveable planet.
According to the UN’s State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023, over 735mn people face hunger globally.
Urgent action, therefore, is needed to strengthen food systems, support sustainable agriculture, and ensure equitable food distribution.
Opinion
Global food and nutrition security in alarming state
Researchers say market failures and inefficiencies contribute to $10tn in hidden costs each year within the global food system
