Human Factors of Food Security

• population growth


  estimated population of 9 billion by 2050 means more mouths to feed

  25,000 die from hunger related diseases

  population growth leads to high demand for supply
• climate change


  ever 1 degree increase slows growth by 7%

  extreme weather events decrease productivity

  weather increases likelihood of disease which leads to decrease in efficiency and health
• Land and Water Degradation

  intensive farming leads to loss of nutrients which make fields less productive

  soil cannot recover from leaching

  leaching can also create toxic water

  commercial shipping can increase water pollution

  water degradation reduces the absorption of CO2 which leads to global warming and a loss of biodiversity
• Global Water Crisis


  water level decline due to over extraction, poor river management and desertification
• Politics


  global power difference - multinational farming companies have more power than small scale farmers

  governments and TNCs set prices

  AC's prioritise themselves

  the goverment maximise their income by taxing 'luxuries'
• Natural Disasters


  $30 billion worth of damage with 82% for floods and droughts

  11 million livestock and 5 million fish lost (enough to food 1 billion people)

  30% of GDP (in Mali) rely on Agriculture even with risks of floods and droughts
• Agricultural diseases 


  changing weather allows for a spread of diseases - warm weather quickly spreads diseases

  16% of crops lost last year due to diseases
• Fossil Fuel Reliance


  fossil fuel is relied on to transport and grow food

  in the US 2.25 billion are burnt every year for the food industry

  American Food industry accounts for almost 19% of total fossil fuel
• Loss of Biodiversity


  1930 - 60 was the Green Revolution where people hoped to improve agricultural productivity by making genetically modified food common

  biodiversity decline due to genetically modified food

  90% of world's food generated from 15 plant species and 8 animal species

  over 90% of crop variety lost from farms

  over 1/2 of domestic animals lost from farms
• Land Use Changes


  increase in tertiary and quaternary jobs means more businesses and less jobs in agriculture

  industrialisation leads to more factories and businesses and the loss in agricultural land
• Changing Diet


  increase of meat in people's diets (e.g. 1kg of beef is equal to 12x the water needed for 1kg of wheat and 1kg of beef also needs 5x the land)

  healthy foods are seen to be more expensive