Braza,Erika May P.

BSA1-01 January 16,2019

“Food Insecurity: Does It Only Affect Developing Countries?”

According to Food Aid Foundation,795 million people in the world do not have enough
food to lead a healthy active life. That's about one in nine people on Earth. The vast majority of
the world's hungry people live in developing countries, where 12.9 percent of the population is
undernourished. And Asia is the continent with the most hungry people among the continents.
Food security is the availability of food and one's access to it while food insecurity is the state of
being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.Just by the
thought of this global issue,people might think that only developing countries are experiencing
food insecurity.The issue is that, does food insecurity only happens in poor countries or does it
also exist in developed countries? For me,developed countries are also affected by food insecurity.

Over long period of time, poverty and hunger have been identifed in less-developed
countries. World Food Summit has been setting goals and targets, for example World Food
Summit in Rome in 1996 – where commitments were made to reduce the world hunger by 2015,
by half. The first World hunger and poverty index was meant to be used to track the progress of
the target agreed at the 1996 world summit. However, the “World hunger and Poverty Index” just
include populations in less-developed countries.This include most of the African, some Asian, and
South american countries.Food security is hard to achieve because of poverty,and by the word
'poverty',most people think that food insecurity only happen in poor or developing countries
because it is the main reason for food insecurity. And because of this,most of the people and even
world organizations are disregarding the fact that food insecurity also exist in developed
countries.The problem of food security is not caused by an insufficient supply of food as has been
commonly believed, but by the lack of purchasing power on the part of nations and
households. One example is the Philippines which is rich in natural resources and have a large
sector of agriculture. Philippines are able to provide sufficient amount of natural and healthy foods
but because of the lack of finances,many people are experiencing severe food insecurity.

Singapore as an example,is one of the richest country in the world,infact it is the 5th on the
list.Its strong growth has earned the small country the nickname “Asian tiger”and Singapore is
also renowned as a food paradise because of different cuisines.Singapore was ranked as the fourth
most food-secure nations on the Global Food Security Index and Economist Intelligence Unit.
Despite of this,researchers of Lien Centre for Social Innovation have found that there are people
here who struggle to get access to sufficient,safe and nutritious food. According to their
research,people with chronic health conditions are too frail and ill to get out and get food. 50% of
these people are experiencing severe food insecurity.Another reason is the lack of financial
resources. According to research,1 out of 5 low-income household are experiencing severe food
insecurity. 1/3 of the respondents of this research are already malnourished. According to Professor
Ng Tze Fin,“It cannot be denied that food insecurity is present in a significant proportion of
Singaporeans, especially in the lower-income and elderly groups,”.

Another example to prove that food insecurity also exist in developed countries is the
United State of America.The economy of the United States is a highly developed mixed economy.
It is the world's largest economy by nominal GDP and the second-largest by purchasing power
parity. Despite of being the 2nd largest by purchasing parity,Americans are also experiencing food
insecurity. According to Hunger + Health (2017), an estimated 1 in 8 Americans were food
insecure, equating to 40 million Americans including more than 12 million children. It is obviously
a lot but it states the fact that even United States, a developed country faces this problem. Poverty
and food insecurity in the United States are closely related. Not all people living below the poverty
line experience food insecurity, and people living above the poverty line can experience food
insecurity. Wages and other critical household expenses (such as caring for an ill child) can also
help predict food insecurity among people living in the United States. This shows that not only
poverty can cause food insecurity but also the capability of a person to take care of their own
health.

This evidences proves that it is not only the poor or developing countries who are affected
by food insecurity but also the rich and developed countries. Being a wealthy country doesn't mean
they are not experiencing problem anymore like food insecurity.For me,this is because a country
might be considered rich but wealth could never be equally distributed to its people.No matter how
rich the country is,it will always have small numbers of unfortunate people who can't even afford
nutritious and safe foods. Food insecurity is a major problem that the world should resolve because
food insecurity can lead to bigger problems. Some of these are malnutrition,nutrient deficiencies
and diseases.As a recommendation,a country with severe food insecurity should focus on their
agriculture. If they are able to produce a lot of organic and healthy foods,the price of it would not
be expensive. Because of limited organic and healthy foods,which is sometimes caused by
focusing too much on exporting the product,people tend to buy unhealthy and processed foods
such as canned goods and instant meals because these are the foods that they can afford.
Government should also focus on providing works for unemployed people,because it can help
them afford healthy foods.

References:

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developing countries - BCFN Foundation. [online] Available at: https://www-barillacfn-
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 Food Research & Action Center. (2019). The Impact of Food Insecurity on Health and
Well-Being: A Conversation with Heather Hartline-Grafton, Dr.PH., R.D. - Food Research
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well-conversation-heather-hartline-grafton-dr-ph-r-d
 Hunger and Health. (2019). What Is Food Insecurity in America? | Hunger and Health.
[online] Available at: https://hungerandhealth.feedingamerica.org/understand-food-
insecurity
 Lcsi.smu.edu.sg. (2019). Hunger in a Food Paradise: Understanding Food Insecurity in
Singapore | Lien Centre for Social Innovation. [online] Available at:
https://lcsi.smu.edu.sg/publications/food-insecurity-report