Food insecurity: an appetite for change

On International Youth Day, Facebook guest blogger Naomi Gammon discusses the role of young people in reshaping unhealthy patterns of food consumption

Regardless of age, gender or country of origin, we all need food to survive. Yet, globally, 820 million people are going hungry.

In the face of a rapidly changing climate, it is vital that young people are engaged in reducing food waste and creating a system in which food is distributed more equally.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a person who is food insecure “[lacks] regular access to enough safe and nutritious food for normal growth and development and an active and healthy life.”

Perhaps this definition connotes the harrowing 1984 image of Birhan  Woldu, the young ‘face of Live Aid’, or the more recent appeals for aid in Yemen, where two million children are malnourished. Live Aid has been labelled by some as misguided and even patronising. But its sentiment echoes strongly today: we must do more to “feed the world”.

According to UNICEF, across the globe, at least 15% of families including under-15s do not have enough money to buy food. The consequences for young people are diverse and long-term, from reliance on initiatives such as food banks or ’Happy Fridges’ to a higher likelihood of chronic illnesses in later life.

With the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 2) – zero hunger by 2030 – way out of reach, apocalyptic sounding ‘food wars’ may become a reality in our lifetimes.

Yet FAO suggests we already produce enough food for 10 billion people… so why are people still starving, and how can we make food security universal?