Saturday, January 18, 2014

We can feed the world now

Food production has tripled since 1945 and average food availability per person has risen by 40 percent yet the health of more than half of the world's 7 billion is affected by under- and overconsumption.

 Despite the abundance of food supplies, there are still 840 million people that go hungry every day This affects their ability to work, it negatively impacts the development of their children, exposes them to illness and leads to premature deaths. The health of another two billion is compromised by nutrient deficiencies.

On the other hand, another 1.5 billion people are overweight or obese, consuming more food than their bodies need and exposing them to greater risk of diabetes, heart problems and other diseases.

 Much of the high food output achieved in the past has placed great stress on natural resources. It has degraded soils, polluted and exhausted fresh water supplies, encroached on forests, depleted wild fish stocks and reduced biodiversity.

"Intensive farming systems, combined with food wastage on a massive scale, have also contributed to greenhouse gas emissions," said Helena Semedo, FAO Deputy Director-Genera."Our common approach to food production is simply not sustainable today, or in 2050, when we will have to provide food for a population of 9.6 billion people. Fortunately we have the means to drastically change our production systems and consumption patterns, that means creating healthy food systems for healthy people,"

SOYMB says it is not just a common approach that is necessary but common ownership

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