Divyansh Verma, Ashima Choudhary
There is no peace without tackling food security and eliminating hunger and there will be no food without tackling climate change -Jose Graziano da Silva
By June 2022, there were 345 million acutely food insecure people across 82 countries, up from 135 million in 2019. This was due to supply chain disruptions, the ongoing economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the conflict in Ukraine driving up food prices to unprecedented levels. The rise in global food insecurity was partly caused by climatic phenomena. Weather patterns are being affected by global warming, resulting in heat waves, torrential rains, and droughts. On the other hand, a significant portion of the issue stems from the way food is currently produced. According to recent estimates, the global food system is the main cause of methane emissions and biodiversity loss, accounting for approximately one-third of greenhouse gas emissions, second only to the energy sector.
The current food system feeds the majority of the world population and supports the livelihood of over 1 billion people. The amount of food produced per person has increased by more than 30% since 1961. This increase has been matched by increase in the use of nitrogen fertilizers (by about 800%) and water resources for irrigation (by more than 100%). However, currently an estimate of 821 million people are undernourished, 151 million children under the age of 5 are stunted, 613 million women and girls under the age of 15- 49 are suffering from iron deficiency and 2 million adults are overweight or obese. The essential micronutrients required for two billion people to lead healthy lives are not met. According to FAO estimates, food production will need to increase by 60% by 2050 in order to meet the increasing demand brought on by population growth and dietary changes.
“Food security exists when all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life” (World Food Summit, 1996). This definition gives rise to four dimensions of food security: availability of food, accessibility (economically and physically), utilization (the way it is used and assimilated by the human body) and stability of these three dimensions.
The current gains made in the fight against hunger and malnutrition are at risk due to climate change. The latest assessment report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emphasizes that the most vulnerable countries and populations face increased risks to their food security due to climate change. Four out of the eight key risks induced by climate change identified by IPCC AR5 have direct consequences for food security: o Loss of rural livelihoods and income o Loss of marine and coastal ecosystemsand livelihoods o Loss of terrestrial and inland water ecosystems, and livelihoods o Food insecurity and breakdown of food systems.
Climate change and non-climate stressors, such as population, wealth development and the demand for products derived from animals, are putting strain on the food chain.Temperature increase, altered precipitation patterns and an increase in the frequency of some extreme events are just a few ways by which observed climate change is harming food security. Research that disentangles climate change from other variables influencing crop yields have demonstrated that, while observed climate changes have had a negative impact on some crop yields in many lower-latitude regions, while, they have had a positive impact on some crop yields in many higher-latitude regions in recent decades. Parts of the Mediterranean have seen significant negative effects on yields due to warming combined by drought. According to indigenous and local knowledge (ILK), high mountain regions of Asia and South America, as well as drylands in Africa, are seeing a decrease in food security due to climate change.
There are various ways by which climate change can impact food security and thus human health. One important way is that climate change affects food production, both directly through effects on yields and indirectly through effects on pests, diseases, and pollination services, as well as water availability and quality.Altering the atmosphere’s carbon dioxide content can also have an impact on biomass and nutritional quality. The risks to food safety during storage and transportation can also be made worse by climate change.
Food security will be increasingly affected by projected future climate change.Global crop and economic models predicted that the effects of climate change would result in a 1-29% increase in grain prices by 2050 across shared Socio-economic Pathways (SSPs) 1, 2, and 3 which would highly impact the consumers globally through higher food prices; regional effects will vary. Models predict that, in comparison to a scenario in which there is no climate change, 1-183 million more people would be at danger of hunger throughout the SSPs, putting low-income consumers at particular risk. Although crop productivity at lower temperatures is predicted to increase with increased carbon dioxide, nutritional quality is predicted to decline. Pest and disease distributions will shift, which will have a detrimental impact on production in many areas.
Fruit and vegetable production a key component of healthy diets, is also vulnerable to climate change. Higher temperatures are predicted to result in decline in crop suitability and yields, particularly in tropical and semi-tropical regions.Heat stress causes annual vegetables to develop more quickly and reduces fruit set, which lowers yields, degrades product quality, and increases food loss and waste.Extended growing seasons facilitate the cultivation of a larger number of plantings and have the potential to augment annual yields. Warmer winters could be dangerous, though, as some fruits and vegetables require a period of cold accumulation to yield a harvest.
Vulnerability of pastoral systems to climate change is very high. Between 200 and 500 million people, including agro-pastoralists, transhumant herders, and nomadic communities, engage in pastoralist activities in more than 75 percent of the world’s nations. Reduced pasture and animal productivity, impaired reproductive function, and a loss of biodiversity are some of the effects on African pastoral systems.Pastoralsystem vulnerability is exacerbated by non-climate factors.
Food security and climate change have strong gender and equity dimensions. Globally, women play a vital role in the food security although regional differences exist. Impact of climate change may vary on diverse social groups depending upon age, ethnicity, gender, wealth and class.The livelihoods of impoverished and vulnerable communities are negatively impacted by climate extremes both immediately and over time. This increases the likelihood of food insecurity, which can exacerbate the stress of both internal and external migration.Synergies between household food security, adaptation, and mitigation can be achieved through empowering women and utilizing rights-based approaches in decision-making.
About 21-37% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emission are attributable to the food system.These pertain to land use and agriculture as well as packaging, processing, transportation, retail, and consumption. This estimate includes 9-14% of emissions from activities related to crops and livestock at the farm gate, 5-14% from changes in land use, such as deforestation and degradation of peatlands, and 5-10% from supply chain activities. This estimate includes GHG emission from food loss and waste.
By lowering emissions from crops and livestock, storing carbon in soils and biomass, and lowering emissions intensity within sustainable production systems, supply-side practises can help mitigate the effects of climate change.
(The authors are Ph.D Scholars, Skuast-Jammu)
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