Sociology Food Insecurity
Food insecurity is considered as the unaffordability, unavailability, instability, and
lack of access to dairy sufficient nourishment. Food insecurity is in the globe is influenced by
factors such as bad weather, political instability, rapid population growth, and degradation of
the environment. According to Grobler 226, the unaffordability of nourishment is a result of a
shortage of food. The shortage of food forms the basis of price inflation for the commodities
to an extent that lower-income earners fail to acquire the food. Besides, food insecurity can
be the inability to produce and consume the food in safe and sufficient forms. The study will,
therefore, establish the causes that result in food security.
The first cause of food insecurity is drought. Drought exacerbates the problem of
producing food. Drought results in loss of agricultural commodities and also the death of
livestock. The situation results in a grave consequence of malnutrition and food security. The
changing world's climate has been a major cause for drought which has stimulated food
shortage, particularly in the developing world. The impacts of drought include the loss of
crops, reduced production of both crops and livestock, death of livestock, damage of fish
habitat and increased infestation of insects and disease. The effects of drought affect the
availability, access, stability, and utilization of food which forms the four dimensions of food
security.
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The second cause of food insecurity is poverty. According to (GARRATT. 3) there is
a strong correlation between food insecurity and poverty. Most of the developing countries
which are termed as poor depend on agriculture for the livelihood of the citizens. About 70%
of the poor nations are unable to purchase the new agricultural technology used in food
production. Therefore, the countries are unable to sustainably produce for their citizens. Also,
poverty results in the inability to purchase the right form of food with the right nutritious diet
resulting in food insecurity. Poor and developing regions generally lack proper agricultural
technology investment because of the financial constraints .lack of agricultural technology
adoption makes it hard for the regions to produce enough food to feed the expanding
population causing food insecurity.
Also, the lack of knowledge and information system results in food insecurity. Lack
of knowledge results in food insecurity as the people are not able to formulate policies aimed
at increased food production, and access to the right quality food. The lack of knowledge and
information on marketing for agricultural commodities and farm input results in reduced food
production hence food insecurity (GARRATT. 8). Moreover, lack of information hinders the
delivery of data that is used for early warning for emerging food insecurity instances.
Measures to address the food insecurity can only be handled by the use of adequate
knowledge and information system. In addition, lack of knowledge and information system
results in policy formulators concentrating on the question of availability and forgetting on
the other four dimensions such as sufficiency of the food. Concentrating on solely the
availability of food exacerbates the problem of food security. Another fundamental effect of
lack of knowledge and information system on the problem of food insecurity is that the
nation is not able to determine whether the food produced locally will meet the need of
consumers.
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Political unrest is one of the factors resulting in food insecurity in various parts of the
world. Democratic countries rarely experience famines even after poor harvest because the
government tends to be more accountable and resources used efficiently in increasing food
supply. The powerful groups in government usually use food as a weapon. The government
and powerful groups force people to surrender into their demands by cutting down food
supplies and restricting the distribution of food to the areas dominated by the opposition
groups. International markets place trade bans on countries experiencing Political unrest.
Trade bans as a result of wars are usually disadvantageous to regions that rely on the
international market for their sale of products and also food supplies causing temporary
famines in the affected country (Rossen, and Kobernik 191). Political instability deprives
people of freedom of movement hindering the communities with less or no food supply from
accessing the markets to purchase food.
Rapid global population growth is a root cause of food insecurity. The geometric
growth of the population does not match with the region's arithmetic food supplies resulting
in food shortages. Increased population growth in poorer and developing regions
characterized by low agricultural outputs is accelerating at high rates exacerbating food
insecurity. Besides, Population growth is adding pressure to the limited arable lands meant
for cultivation reducing the agricultural output leading to food shortages. The increased
population growth has outstripped the production capacity of agricultural-based communities
on which they depend on leading to food insecurities. Increasing settlements and urban
expansion on agricultural land have led to decreased acreage of fertile lands that support
agriculture which has led to decreased food supplies.
Global dietary change from agricultural-based products to western-stylee meat-based
diets in many developed countries has facilitated food insecurity. Agricultural products such
as vegetables and grains can support a larger population compared to a meat diet because of
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their abundance in almost every region (Rossen, and Kobernik 192). As the population in the
developed countries continues to grow wealthier the transition from agricultural-based
products to western- meat diet is increasing. The transition from the vegetables and grain
foodstuffs to meat-based diet result to few people practicing agriculture which may not
sustain high populations for a longer period causing food insecurity
Conclusion
Food insecurity has four pillars, instability, inaccessibility, unavailability, and under-
utilization of food. A combination of climatic, institutional, social, and economic factors
influences food insecurity. Drought is one of the climatic factors that influence the problem
of food insecurity. The institutional factors that cause food insecurity include a lack of
knowledge and information systems that affect policy formation. Social factors leading to
food insecurity include poverty and political instability which not only affect availability but
also accessibility of sufficient food. Lastly, the economic global transition is the economic
factor that causes food insecurity as people start demanding more meat diets.
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Work Cited
GARRATT, ELISABETH. "Food Insecurity In Europe: Who Is At Risk, And How
Successful Are Social Benefits In Protecting Against Food
Insecurity?". Journal Of Social Policy, 2019, pp. 1-25. Cambridge University
Press (CUP), doi:10.1017/s0047279419000746.
Grobler, Wynand. “Perceptions of Poverty: A Study of Food Secure and Food Insecure
Households in an Urban Area in South Africa.” Procedia Economics and
Finance, vol. 35, 2016, pp. 224–231.
Rossen, L. M., and E. K. Kobernik. "Food Insecurity And Dietary Intake Among US Youth,
2007-2010". Pediatric Obesity, vol 11, no. 3, 2015, pp. 187-193. Wiley,
doi:10.1111/ijpo.12044.