L12 - Impacts of food insecurity

• the most obvious problem associated with food insecurity for people is the lack of food
• famine and undernutrition:

  famine is the clearest indicator that people in an area do not have sufficient food. famine is described as 'a widespread scarcity of food'
• famine and undernutrition:

  • not only causes death, but also undernutrition, which weakens immunity and makes people more vulnerable to diseases
  • may also lead to deficiency diseases such as beriberi or anaemia
  • can also hinder the physical and cognitive development of children
• famine and undernutrition:

  the UN food and agriculture organisation estimates that about 805 million people were suffering from chronic undernourishment
• conflict:

  the increased competition for scarce food resources can lead to conflict in both local and international communities
• conflict and social unrest:

  the need for water for farming can lead to international disputes over ownership of the water sources
• conflict and social unrest:

  the river nile runs through several countries and all of them need the water, so there are long negotiations over how the water can be shared
• environment:

  in LICs the best land is often used to grow cash crops for export to HICs, such as flowers and green beans in Kenya. this leaves the less suitable land for growing food to feed the local population of the country
• environment:

  the small margin of land does not have sufficient nutrients or water to produce a good harvest and will quickly become infertile
• environment:

  overgrazing by cattle and other farm animals also leaves the soil exposed. once the soil has no vegetation to hold it in place, it can be blown or washed away, so causing soil erosion
• rising prices:

  a shortage of food can lead to an increase in prices for example the poor grain harvests in russia, australia and pakistan in 2010 which led to a ban on exports of grain from russia and a rise in global prices
• famine and undernutrition:

  26 million people are severely hungry today and over 5 million people have been displaced from their homes
• environment:

  soil erosion shaved between 0.6 and 2.1 percent off of the countrys gross domestic product
• conflict:

  due to the war in ukraine, a leading grain exporter has seen a 29 percent drop in ukraines grain exports in 2022
• food prices:

  staple food prices surged by an average 23.9 percent in 2020-22