Week 10 (Unit 18)
World Food Crops and Food Security
Current supply and demand for world food
Sustainability of crop production systems
Promise and controversy of biotechnology
Strategies for increasing food security
Current Supply and Demand for World
Source:Pinstrup-Andersen and Cohen, IFPRI
See also the section in Lecture
1 on Global Food Security.
Since 1970, the number of
food-insecure people in developing countries declined by 17% to
the current 800 million, despite rapid population growth. However,
progress has not been evenly distributed across the continents.
Major improvements occurred in East and Southeast Asia, while the
number of food-insecure people increased by 18% in South Asia and
more than doubled in sub-Saharan Africa.
Malnutrition is a factor in more than five million deaths of children
under the age of five each year. As the figure below shows, mortality
rates in this age group have declined in the last four decades,
but still remain at very high levels in sub-Saharan Africa and South
|Photo by Keith Weller USDA/ARS
Viewpoint: Hunger is not a myth, but myths keep us from ending hunger
The following discussion presents the viewpoints expressed in a book
Hunger: 12 Myths, 2nd Edition,
by Frances Moore Lappé, Joseph Collins and Peter Rosset, with
See also the lecture notes by R.J. Salvador that provide additional
discussion on these myths: http://www.agron.iastate.edu/courses/agron342/topics342.html
- At least 700 million people do not have enough to eat.
- Every year hunger kills 12 million children worldwide.
Myth 1: Not Enough Food to Go Around
- Enough food is available to provide at least 4.3 pounds of food
per person a day worldwide.
- The problem is that many people are too poor to buy readily available
Myth 2: Nature's to Blame for Famine
- It's easy to blame nature.
- Food is always available for those who can afford it.
- The real culprits are an economy that fails to offer everyone opportunities,
and a society that places economic efficiency over compassion.
Myth 3: Too Many People
- Rapid population growth results from underlying inequities that deprive
people, especially poor women, of economic opportunity and security.
- Reduced poverty and better education lower mortality rates, which
generally leads to declining birth rates.
Myth 4: The Environment vs. More Food?
- Efforts to feed the hungry are not causing the environmental crisis.
- Large corporations are mainly responsible for deforestation-creating
and profiting from developed-country consumer demand for tropical
and exotic or out-of-season food items.
- Most pesticides used in the Third World are applied to export crops,
playing little role in feeding the hungry.
Myth 5: The Green Revolution is the Answer
- Great production increases were achieved through the green revolution.
- Increasing production alone cannot alleviate hunger.
- Fails to alter the distribution of economic power that determines
who can buy the additional food.
Myth 6: We Need Large Farms
- Small farmers typically achieve at least four to five times greater
output per acre than large-scale farmers, in part because they work
their land more intensively and use integrated, and often more sustainable,
- Secure land tenure is needed, to give farmers incentives to invest
in land improvements, to rotate crops, or to leave land fallow for the
sake of long-term soil fertility.
Myth 7: The Free Market Can End Hunger
- The market's efficiencies can only work to eliminate hunger when purchasing
power is widely dispersed.
Myth 8: Free Trade is the Answer
- In most Third World countries exports have boomed while hunger has
continued unabated or actually worsened.
- Export crop production squeezes out basic food production.
Myth 9: Too Hungry to Fight for Their Rights
- If the poor were truly passive, few of them could survive.
- Our responsibility is to remove the obstacles in their paths.
Myth 10: More U.S. Aid Will Help the Hungry
- Foreign aid can only reinforce, not change, the status quo.
- Where governments answer only to elites, our aid not only fails to
reach hungry people, it shores up the very forces working against
Myth 11: We Benefit From Their Poverty
- Enforced poverty in the Third World jeopardizes U.S. jobs, wages
and working conditions as corporations seek cheaper labor abroad.
- In a global economy, what American workers have achieved in employment,
wage levels, and working conditions can be protected only when working
people in every country are freed from economic desperation.
Myth 12: Curtail Freedom to End Hunger?
- Around the world, there is no correlation between hunger and civil
- Economic security for all is the guarantor of our liberty.
harvest in Syria
Photo courtesy ICARDA
|Wheat harvest on the Palouse
Photo courtesy USDA/ARS
- Current population growth rate is 73 million / year
- 6 Billion in 2000
- 7.5 Billion estimated by 2020
- Urban population of the developing world could double to 3.4 billion
The world population continues to increase, but as the beginning of the
21st century neared, there were indications that the rate of growth was
declining. The United Nations reduced the world population projections
for 2050 from 9.4 billion to 8.9 billion. Two thirds of the drop was attributed
to falling birth rates, but one third was estimated to be due to rising
Three factors are thought to be contributing or have potential to contribute
to rising death rates:
- HIV epidemic - unless
a cure is found, many African countries will lose one fifth or more
of their adult population to AIDS within the next decade. With a 1%
infection rate, India is home to more infected individuals than any
other nation. HIV affects the death rate of young adults more than any
other age group.
- aquifer depletion -
Since 40 percent of the world's food comes from irrigated land, water
shortages can quickly lead to food shortages. In India, water withdrawals
are now double the rate of aquifer recharge, yet the population continues
to expand by 18 million per year. Cutbacks in irrigation water could
reduce India's grain harvest by one fourth. This will exacerbate the
existing problems of hunger and malnutrition, particularly among children.
- shrinking cropland area per person
- Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Pakistan are large countries with weak family
planning programs that are likely to be hardest hit by this threat.
|Maize farm in Colorado
Photo by Scott Bauer, USDA/ARS
|Maize farm in northern Nigeria
Photo courtesy IITA
and Gommes. 1996.
It now seems likely that human activity can alter climate, which in turn
can affect agricultural productivity. The relationship between climate
change and plant growth is complex, involving the interaction of several
systems with many variables that must be collectively considered.
In addition to water vapour, important greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide
(CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O),
tropospheric ozone (O3) and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
of agricultural greenhouse gases with the trends as currently
(from Sombroek and Gommes, 1996; adapted from IPCC, 1992; Houghton
et al., 1995; Keeling et al., 1995). ppmv and ppbv stand for parts
per 106 and parts per 109, respectively, by volume.
Atmospheric lifetime (yr)
Direct Global Warming Potential (the direct warming
effect in relation to CO2 at a time horizon of 100
Current annual increase (%)
Major agricultural sources
- wetland rice
- synthetic N fertilizers
- animal excreta
- biomass burning
- biological N fixation
Percentage of global source stemming from agriculture
Predicted change 1990-2020
The required reductions of emissions to achieve stabilization of atmospheric
concentrations of current levels are believed to be >60% for CO2
15-20% for CH4 and 70-80% for N2O.
Ecological and indirect climate effects
- the overall predictability of weather and climate would decrease,
making short- and medium-term planning of farm operations more difficult.
Climate variability is likely to increase under global warming.
- loss of biodiversity from some of the most fragile environments,
such as tropical forests and mangroves.
- rise in sea-level (40 cm in the coming 100 years) would submerge some
valuable coastal agricultural land.
- the incidence of diseases and pests, especially alien ones, could
- present (agro) ecological zones could shift in some cases over distances
of hundreds of kilometers, and hundreds of meters in altitude, with
the danger that some plants, especially trees, and animal species cannot
shift location fast enough, and that farming systems cannot adjust themselves
- higher temperatures would create longer seasons for crop growth in
cool and mountainous areas, permitting increased cropping and production
in some cases. In contrast, climate change can cause reduced productivity
in already warm areas.
- the current imbalance of food production between cool and temperate
regions and tropical and subtropical regions could worsen.
Effects on precipitation
It is generally agreed that increased temperatures will increase evaporation,
atmospheric moisture, and consequently precipitation, by an estimated
10-15%. The potential effects on rainfall intensity and the spatial distribution
of precipitation are still being debated. Some researchers predict that
rainfall conditions in the Sahel will be more favorable. In general, arid
to semiarid regions would benefit from increased rainfall, whereas areas
that are already humid would be adversely affected.
Effects on soils
- increased rainfall intensity could increase soil erosion and runoff.
- increased temperatures may lead to more decomposition of soil organic
- increased plant growth due to the CO2 fertilization effect
may cause other plant nutrients such as N and P to become in short supply;
however, CO2 increase would stimulate mycorrhizal activity
(making soil phosphorus more available), and also biological nitrogen
fixation. Increased root growth would cause extra weathering of the
substratum, releasing increased supplies of potassium and micronutrients.
- the CO2 fertilization effect would produce more litter
of higher C/N ratio, hence more organic matter for incorporation into
the soil as humus; litter with high C/N decomposes slowly and this can
act as a negative feedback on nutrient availability.
- the 'CO2 anti-transpirant' effect would stimulate plant
growth in dryland areas, and more soil protection against erosion and
lower topsoil temperatures, leading to an 'anti-desertification effect'.
Direct effects of global warming on plant growth
Increased atmospheric CO2 levels
due to deforestation, burning of fossil fuels and biomass can increase
plant photosynthesis. If conditions are favorable this may result in increased
growth and biomass production, particularly in C3 plants. Increased
CO2 levels may also reduce numbers and size of leaf stomata,
which in turn will reduce transpiration and increase water use efficiency.
There is some evidence that high CO2 levels may favor root
growth over shoot growth.
Increased ultraviolet radiation (UV-B, between 280 and 320 nanometres),
due to depletion of the stratospheric ozone
layer, mainly in the Antarctic region, may negatively
affect terrestrial and aquatic photosynthesis and animal health.
Tropospheric ozone originates equally from photochemical reactions involving
nitrogen oxides (NOx), methane or carbon monoxide, and from
downward movement of stratospheric ozone. High
ozone concentrations in the troposphere have toxic effects
on both plant and animal life. The problem of high O3 levels
near the earth's surface is greatest near major cities and airports. It
is thought that high ozone levels may be the cause of some new types of
damage observed on forest trees in Europe and the USA.
Effects of increased temperature on plant
- may increase dark respiration of plants, diminishing net biomass production
- higher cold-season temperatures may lead to earlier ripening of annual
crops, diminishing yield per crop
- lengthening of the growing season might permit more crops to be grown
in a year
- reduced winter kill of pests at high latitudes might increase losses
due to pests and diseases
- will increase number of crops that can be grown at high latitudes
Generally, increased temperatures are associated with increased radiation
and water use. The net physiological and ecological effects of high temperatures
would have to be determined for each specific crop and location.
At the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, the U.N. Framework Convention
on Climate Change was adopted. Under this agreement, industrial and former
Eastern bloc nations agreed to aim to voluntarily return their emissions
to 1990 levels by the year 2000. However, nearly all the countries fell
short of their initial Rio goals. Globally, carbon emissions grew by 10.2
percent between 1990 and 2001 (Worldwatch
The Kyoto Protocol is a legally binding document that would limit emissions
of greenhouse gases. As of 15 May, 2003, 84 Parties have signed and 109
Parties have ratified or acceded to the Kyoto Protocol. The USA has not
endorsed the Protocol.
In June, 2003 the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a plan to
set up incentives for farmers to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions:
"The USDA will provide an unspecified amount of financial incentives
for farmers, as well as technical assistance and training in management
practices to increase the removal of harmful carbon dioxide and other
gases from the atmosphere, a process called "carbon sequestration."
"Forest, crop and grazing land conservation actions will be key
to greenhouse gas reductions. Manure management, improved fertilizer
use and fuel efficiencies can also help reduce the harmful gases."
"The USDA estimates that by focusing attention on the problem
and making a federal investment of almost $3.9 billion in agriculture
and forest conservation in fiscal 2004, a reduction of roughly 12 million
tons of greenhouse gases can be achieved annually by 2012."
For a recent review of the economic aspects of the USDA's carbon sequestration
incentives program: http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/TB1909/
For links to additional information about climate change:
For specific figures concerning changes that have occurred in the last
decade in fossil fuel use and renewable energy, carbon emissions, and
the impact of climate change:
Sustainability of Crop Production Systems
Source: What is Sustainable
Agriculture? SAREP, University of California
integrates three main goals--
- environmental health
- economic profitability
- social and economic equity.
The concept of sustainability rests on the principle that we must
meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs. Stewardship of both
natural and human resources is of prime importance.
A systems perspective is needed to understand the concept of sustainability.
The system is envisioned in its broadest sense, from the individual
farm, to the local ecosystem, and to communities affected by this
farming system both locally and globally.
Photo by Scott Bauer, USDA/ARS
Water quality and availability
Issues related to water quality involve salinization and contamination
of ground and surface waters by pesticides, nitrates and selenium. Salinity
has become a problem where water is used on shallow soils in arid regions
or where the water table is near the root zone of crops. Use of salt tolerant
crops and low volume irrigation are two means for reducing the salinity
In sustainable agricultural systems, there is reduced reliance on non-renewable
energy sources and a substitution of renewable sources or labor to the
extent that is economically feasible.
Many agricultural operations affect air quality:
- smoke from agricultural burning
- dust from tillage, traffic and harvest
- pesticide drift from spraying
- nitrous oxide emissions from the use of nitrogen fertilizer.
Options to improve air quality include:
- incorporating crop residue into the soil
- using appropriate levels of tillage
- planting wind breaks, cover crops or strips of native perennial grasses
to reduce dust.
Options to improve soil quality include:
- reducing or eliminating tillage
- managing irrigation to reduce runoff
- keeping the soil covered with plants or mulch
Sustainable plant production practices
Recommendations will be site specific, but here are a few that are general:
- Select species and varieties that are well suited to the site and
to conditions on the farm
- Diversify crops (including livestock) and cultural practices to enhance
the biological and economic stability of the farm
World Summit on Sustainable Development
In 2000 the UN General Assembly decided to host a World Summit on Sustainable
Development in 2002 in South Africa. This summit was planned to coincide
with the tenth anniversary of the UN Conference on Environment and Development,
or Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro. The 2002 meeting was the first
time since the Rio Conference in 1992 that heads of state and government
gathered to assess progress on sustainable development.
For a more general discussion, see "What
is Sustainability Anyway?"
by Thomas Prugh and Erik Assadourian of the Worldwatch
Promise and Controversy of Biotechnology
In this course, we have discussed the potential for use of Bt corn, golden
rice, and other genetically modified crops. Our aim is to examine the
controversy surrounding GMO's from different points of view, and to provide
the necessary technical background to enable you to make informed decisions
about biotechnology issues. In the following sections, we present references
and summaries of two diverse views on the role of biotechnology in combating
hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.
Viewpoint: Biotechnology is an important tool for combating hunger in
Conway, Gordon. 2003
McGloughlin, Martina. 1999
Tripp, Robert. 2000
Viewpoint: Biotechnology will not solve the problem of hunger and malnutrition
in developing countries
Altieri, M.A. & P. Rosset, 1999a
Altieri, M.A. & P. Rosset, 1999b
- There is enough food available to provide 4.3 pounds for every person
every day. The real causes of hunger are poverty, inequality, and lack
of access to food and land.
- Most innovations in agricultural biotechnology are profit-driven rather
than need-driven. The real thrust of the genetic engineering industry
is not to make third world agriculture more productive, but to generate
o Example: Seed-chemical packages such as Roundup Ready soybeans
- There is no evidence to date that engineered crops yield more than
- There is a concern that crossing of GMOs with wild species can
- There are many unanswered questions regarding the impact of transgenic
on other parts of the ecosystem (e.g. Monarch butterflies).
- Development of resistance to Bt is inevitable. The natural Bt-pesticide
that organic farmers and others rely upon may be rendered useless.
Bt crops violate basic integrated pest management (IPM) principles.
- The trend to create broad international markets
for single products may lead to a loss of biodiversity, greater genetic
vulnerability and genetic erosion of local varieties in developing
reduce possibilities for crop diversification in time and space.
- Safety issues have not been adequately addressed. The extent of screening
for toxins or allergens and nutritional value of GMOs has been inadequate.
Methods for risk
well-developed and not well-funded. Biosafety regulations are lacking
in many developing countries.
- There is a potential for vector recombination to generate new virulent
strains of viruses, especially in transgenic plants engineered for
with viral genes.
- Safety regulation is often ineffective (e.g. mad cow disease scare)
- The “precautionary principle” should be adopted:
"When an activity raises threats of harm to human health or the
environment, precautionary measures should be taken even if some cause
and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically. In
this context the proponent of an activity, rather than the public, should
bear the burden of proof. The process of applying the precautionary principle
must be open, informed and democratic and must include potentially affected
parties. It must also involve an examination of the full range of alternatives,
including no action."
- Wingspread Statement on the Precautionary
Principle, Jan. 1998
- Because GMO products are not properly labeled, consumers cannot discriminate
between genetically engineered and non-GMO food sources.
- Agroecological approaches (crop rotations, intercropping) are not
being adequately researched and promoted in developing countries due
to diversion of funds for biotechnology. Emphasis should be on diversity,
synergy, recycling and integration; and social processes that emphasize
community participation and empowerment. These approaches, involving
NGOs and farmers, have proven to be effective.
Strategies for Increasing Food Security
Rice harvesting in Texas
Photo by David Nance, USDA/ARS
Photo courtesy IRRI
Alternative Food Crops
Although there may be as many as 50,000 edible plant species in the
world, about 103 species account for 90 percent of the world's food crop
Wheat, rice, and maize account for over 50% of the calories from plants
in the human diet.
To increase the biodiversity of our food production systems, organizations
such as FAO are promoting adoption of local crops that have the potential
to contribute to the global food supply. Many of these crops have unique
features that might fill a niche in a particular production environment
or satisfy a special dietary need.
In this section we mention just a few of the crops that are thought
to have the greatest market potential. See the Purdue
NewCrop website for more information about alternative food crops.
|Link to image:
Release from BYU
Quinoa is native to the high altitudes in the Andes,
where it has traditionally been an important staple food crop of
It is an annual crop that is primarily self-pollinating, growing
one to two meters in height. The grain has been called a cereal,
family. In fact, the grain is more nutritious than the true cereals
in many respects:
- It has a good quality protein that is high in the amino acids
lysine and tryptophan
- It has relatively high protein content (12-18%)
- It is high in calcium, phosphorous, and iron
- The leaves can also be eaten
Many landrace varieties contain saponins, which are antinutritional
factors that must be removed before the grains are consumed. Saponins
can be removed by alkaline water treatment or through mechanical
means. Quinoa grain can be cooked like rice, or ground to a flour
that can be mixed with wheat flour to make bread.
Johnson and Ward, 1993
Lost Crops of the Incas, 1989
|Link to image:
Crops of the Incas, 1989
The genus Amaranthus includes at least 60 species. Some are
weeds, such as the familiar pigweed. The grain Amaranths were
important staple food crops of the Aztecs prior to arrival of the
Europeans. In rituals it was mixed with blood and shaped into idols,
were eaten ceremoniously. This practice appalled
the Spanish Conquistadors, who forbade the use of the crop. Grain
Amaranth was ignored for centuries, but today is grown
in diverse parts of the world including India, Pakistan, China,
and Siberia. It is well-adapted to the
The plants may grow to a height of 2.5 m and the inflorescence may
be various colors of purple, red and gold. It is relatively tolerant
to heat, drought, and low soil fertility.
A single plant may have
up to 50,000 small seeds per head. Both the grain and the leaves
are edible. The grain may be toasted, boiled, popped, or ground
into flour. The raw grain cannot be digested, but once cooked it
is easy to digest.
It is often used as an alternative grain by people who have allergies
to wheat and other cereals. It is also a traditional food for people
who are recovering from an illness. It is gaining increasing popularity
as a health food crop, because it has relatively high protein content
(12-17%) and is high in the amino acid lysine.
Kauffman and Weber, 1990
Article by Karen Railey,
Lupinus mutabilis Sweet
|Link to image:
Tarwi, also known as Andean Lupin, is
a South American legume that was a staple crop of the Incas. The
protein (46%) and oil (20%) content of tarwi are comparable to
soybeans. Although it was domesticated in the highlands,
it also grows well in
to frost and drought. Its capacity to fix nitrogen makes it useful
as a green manure crop. The grain has a high alkaloid content that
must be removed by processing before it is consumed.
Mujica, A. (1994) Andean Grains and Legumes
|Link to image:
Gepts, pb143, UC Davis
|Oca is an Andean tuber crop with white flesh and skin
color that varies from white to red.
It can be eaten fresh, like a carrot, or cooked. Some varieties have a slightly
tart taste due to the presence of oxalic acid, which is an antinutritional
factor also found in spinach. Oca has become a popular crop in Mexico
and New Zealand, where it is called "New Zealand yam". It can also
be grown in Oregon!
Crops of the Incas, 1989
Achieving food security for all by 2020 - IFPRI's Strategy
power point presentation
There are 800 million hungry people and in the world, and 170 million
children under age five who are malnourished. In 1993 IFPRI and its
launched an initiative called the 2020 Vision for Food, Agriculture and
the Environment, that seeks to develop and promote a shared vision for
how to meet the world’s food needs while reducing poverty and protecting
the environment. The highlights of their action plan are presented here.
At the World Food Summit (WFS) of 1996 the global community agreed to
take steps to halve the number of hungry people in the world by 2015.
While some progress has been made, the reduction in poverty has fallen
far short of the mark. IFPRI projections for the year 2020 show that in
the most likely scenario, the number of malnourished preschool children
could decline by about 20 percent, but as many as 130 million children
will still be afflicted by malnutrition.
Nine Critical Driving Forces
1) Accelerating globalization and further
trade liberalization - policymakers must ensure
that globalization benefits poor people.
2) Sweeping technological changes
- Technological advances in molecular biology, energy, and information
and communications have the potential to help achieve food security and
make natural resource management more sustainable, but policymakers and
researchers must target their efforts to reach poor people.
3) Degradation of natural resources and
increasing water scarcity - environmental degradation
contributes to poverty, but also often results from it. Food security
solutions must effectively address natural resource issues to be sustainable.
4) Health and nutrition crises
- Malaria, tuberculosis, micronutrient deficiencies, HIV/AIDS, and chronic
diseases are all compromising food and nutrition security in many developing
5) Rapid urbanization -
current policies must continue to focus on the countryside, where the
majority of poor and food-insecure people still live, but future policy
actions must pay increasing attention to growing poverty, food insecurity,
and malnutrition in urban areas.
6) The changing face of farming
- the farm population is aging, labor shortages are exacerbated by HIV/AIDS,
and more women are farming. Traditional, small-scale family farms are
7) Continued conflict -
Achieving sustainable food security for all will not be possible in the
midst of conflict.
8) Climate Change - Agricultural
policies must focus on finding ways to keep agriculture productive as
climate change continues.
9) Changing roles and responsibilities
of key actors - Local governments, business and industry,
NGOs, and other parts of civil society are undertaking many activities
previously performed by national governments. At the global level, transnational
corporations and broad NGO coalitions are becoming increasingly prominent
in policy debates. National governments must continue to uphold the rule
of law and to develop nationwide infrastructure.
Seven Pro-poor Action Areas
1. Investing in human resources
- universal access to primary and preventive health care
- contain the HIV/AIDS pandemic
- improved nutrition
- food fortification and supplementation with needed micronutrients
- nutrition education to promote healthy diets
- development of staple crops rich in iron and vitamin A
- policies and institutions that improve sanitary conditions, storage,
transport, processing, and conservation of food
- improve education, literacy and numeracy, especially for girls
2. Improving access to productive resources and remunerative employment
- 75 percent of the poor still living in rural areas. Small-scale, nonagricultural
rural enterprises are needed to provide livelihoods for rural people.
- increase agricultural productivity
- access to credit and savings institutions
- high-yielding crop varieties
- improved livestock
- appropriate tools, fertilizer
- appropriate pest management technology
- secure access to land
- promote associations of farmers and small-scale traders
- ensure that increased assets go to women as well as men
3. Improving markets, infrastructure, and institutions
- development of private competitive markets, especially in rural areas
- competent public administration and investment in public goods
4. Expanding appropriate research, knowledge, and technology
- publicly funded research and development is essential to achieving
sustainable yield increases on existing land
- farmers must be able to choose agricultural practices and technologies
from the full range of approaches available — agroecological
methods, conventional research methods, and molecular biology research
Moreover, researchers must link these approaches more closely with
- new information and communications technologies can also be used to
serve farmers, rural entrepreneurs, and health care workers
5. Improving Natural Resource Management
- the world holds enough water to meet demand for the foreseeable future,
but water is
poorly distributed across countries, within countries, between seasons,
among multiple uses. Improved water use efficiency is needed.
- policies should encourage farmers to make appropriate use of organic
and inorganic fertilizers and improved soil management
- secure farmers' rights to land and other resources. Farmers must
act collectively for some technologies to be effective.
- farmers should adopt practices to alleviate global warming, such as
reducing the burning of
crop residues, and planting trees and avoiding deforestation
6. Good Governance
- support the rule of law, transparency, the elimination of corruption,
sound public administration, and respect and protection for human rights
- independent judiciary
- free and independent media
7. Pro-poor National and International Trade and Macroeconomic Policies
- developing countries must have better access to industrialized countries’
- industrialized countries must reduce and eventually end trade-distorting
- donor governments must fulfill pledge to devote 0.7 percent of gross
national product to
- aid should be targeted on the basis of need, so that the least-developed
countries, particularly those of South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa,
receive a higher share of assistance
- developed-country governments and international financial institutions
must do more to lift the burden of debt from highly indebted poor countries.
Agencies involved in combating world hunger
|America's Second Harvest
||America's Second Harvest is the nation's largest hunger-relief
surplus food to more than 23 million hungry Americans each year.
|Bread for the World,
the World Institute
|BFW is a nationwide Christian citizens movement seeking justice
for the world's hungry people by lobbying our nation's decision
BFW Institute seeks justice for hungry people by engaging in research
and education on policies related to hunger and development.
||CARE's mission is to serve individuals and families in the poorest
communities in the world.
|Consultative Group on International
Agricultural Research, CGIAR
||The CGIAR's mission is to achieve sustainable food security and
reduce poverty in developing countries through scientific research
in the fields of agriculture, forestry, fisheries, policy, and
and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO
||FAO's mission is to alleviate poverty and hunger by promoting
agricultural development, improved nutrition and the pursuit of
for Food and Development Policy, Food First
||The purpose of the Institute for Food and Development Policy
- Food First - is to eliminate the injustices that cause hunger.
They implement their strategy through research, analysis and education
for action to inspire and mobilize people and their organizations
to transform systems and institutions that perpetuate those injustices.
Food Policy Research Institute, IFPRI
||IFPRI's mission is to identify and analyze policies
for sustainably meeting the food needs of the developing world.
||Mercy Corps aims to alleviate
suffering, poverty, and oppression by helping people build secure,
productive, and just communities. Their headquarters are in Portland,
||Oxfam GB is a development, relief, and campaigning organisation
that works with others to find lasting solutions to poverty and
suffering around the world.
|The Rockefeller Foundation
African Food Security Initiative
|The Food Security program of the Rockefeller Foundation aims
improve the food security of the rural poor through the generation
provide sustainable livelihoods in areas of sub-Saharan Africa
and Asia bypassed by the Green Revolution.
Children's fund, UNICEF
||UNICEF advocates for the protection of children's rights and
to help meet their basic needs.
|United Nations Development Program,
||UNDP is the UN's global development network, advocating for change
and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources
to help people build a better life.
|World Health Organization, WHO
||The objective of The World Health Organization, the United Nations
specialized agency for health, is the attainment
by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health
is defined as a state of complete physical, mental and social
well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
|World Hunger Education
||One of the objectives of WHES is to inform the community of people
interested in issues of hunger and poverty, the public, and policymakers,
about the causes, extent, and efforts to end hunger and poverty
in the United States and the world.
|World Vision, International,
||World Vision International is a Christian relief and development
organisation working for the well being of all people, especially
Websites about Hunger
|Your click on the "Give Free Food" button
funds food for the hungry, paid for by site sponsors whose ads
appear after you click. The food is provided to people in need
around the world through the efforts of Mercy Corps and America's
Second Harvest. You can click on the "Give Free Food" button
once a day.
|HungerWeb is for researchers, educators, policy influencers,
operations personnel, other professionals and students using the
Internet to help find solutions to hunger at the global, national,
community and household level—or for anyone who is interested
in learning more about the subject.
|National Hunger Awareness Day
|On June 7th,
2005 communities across the country will unite to
focus attention on the persistent problem of domestic hunger.
The purpose of this lecture is to discuss issues related to the world
food situation and to provide you with resources to learn more. You will
not be expected to remember all of the details in this lecture on an
exam. Consequently, there
will be no optional quiz, but Study
this lecture are available to help you review for the final.
Optional, extra credit assignments
(Each assignment is worth five points. You may choose only one)
- Go to the discussion
board on Blackboard and post one question that comes to your mind
as you review the material for this lecture (your question may be factual
or philosophical). Respond to a question posted by one of your classmates.
- Identify a minor or alternative food crop that has not been discussed
in this course. Go to the discussion board and explain why you think
this crop has the potential to contribute to a more diverse food system
and/or food security. Include your sources of information.
Altieri, M.A. & P. Rosset. 1999. Ten reasons why biotechnology will
not ensure food security, protect the environment and reduce poverty in
the developing world. AgBioForum – Volume 2, Number 3 & 4: 155-162. http://www.agbioforum.org
Fischer, G., K. Frohberg, M.L. Parry, C. Rosenzweig. 1996. The potential
effects of climate change on world food production and security. In
Bazzaz, F., and W. Sombroek (eds.) Global climate change and agricultural
production: Direct and indirect effects of changing hydrological, pedological
and plant physiological processes. FAO, Rome.
IFDP. 1998. 12 Myths About Hunger. Based on World Hunger: 12 Myths, 2nd
Edition, by Frances Moore Lappé, Joseph Collins and Peter Rosset,
with Luis Esparza.
IFPRI. 2003. IFPRI's Strategy Toward Food and Nutrition Security, 2003.
International Food Policy Research Institute. 2002. Achieving sustainable
food security for all by 2020: priorities and responsibilities.
Levetin, E. and K. McMahon. 2005. Feeding a hungry world. Chapter 15
in Plants and Society, 4th edition. McGraw-Hill, New York, NY.
Additional on-line notes and references:
McGloughlin, Martina. 1999. Ten reasons why biotechnology will be important
to the developing world. AgBioForum – Volume 2, Numbers 3 & 4:
Mujica, A. 1994. Andean grains and legumes. In J.E. Hernándo
Bermejo and J. León (eds.). Plant Production and Protection Series
No. 26. FAO, Rome, Italy. p. 131–148.
National Research Council. 1989. Lost Crops of the Incas: Little-Known
Plants of the Andes with Promise for Worldwide Cultivation. National
Pinstrup-Andersen, P. and M.J. Cohen. 2003. Overview of the world food
situation and outlook.
Sombroek, W.G., and R. Gommes. 1996. The climate change - Agriculture
conundrum. In Bazzaz, F., and W. Sombroek (eds.) Global climate
change and agricultural production. Direct and indirect effects of changing
hydrological, pedological and plant physiological processes. FAO, Rome.
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. 1997. What is
University of California.
Tripp, Robert. 2000. GMOs and NGOs: Biotechnology, the policy process,
and the presentation of evidence. Natural Resource Perspectives No. 60.
Worldwatch Institute. 2003. Climate Change.
Worldwatch Institute. 2001. The hard numbers on climate change.