Academics, policy makers, industrialists, farmers and end-users give their views on food security.
Bananas, the UK’s favourite fruit, appear at first glance to be among our most reliable and resilient fresh produce. They are stocked in every supermarket on every day of the year, and their price seldom varies by more than a few pence per kilo.
Zinc deficiency affects around 17% of the world’s population, mostly in developing countries. In Pakistan, the most recent national nutrition survey indicated that over 40% of women are zinc deficient. Could using a new type of flour in cooking help tackle this deficiency?
The Asterix fans amongst you will know that the Gauls have only one fear, namely that the sky may fall on their heads tomorrow. As Chief Vitalstatistix says, “but tomorrow never comes”. Whilst the Chief is of course right, we should remember that ‘tomorrow’ is always less than 24 hours away. Wearing a food systems hat, we need to take the threat of the sky falling in tomorrow more seriously.
Carolin Reiner and Toby Park from the Behavioural Insights Team discuss the real cost of food waste in the UK. Carolin focusses on consumers, energy, and sustainability, and Toby leads on the team’s energy and sustainability work.
John Ingram of the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford discusses the different strategies for addressing food system resilience and the new opportunities that these can create in the food sector.
More research is needed on the link between food security, climate change and conflict if we want to eradicate world hunger, says Director of GFS, Riaz Bhunnoo.
At their inaugural meeting, the Global Food Security Science Advisory Group analysed recent events and identified a set of 10 priority research questions to address the food security challenge. Professor Tim Benton from the University of Leeds and chair of the advisory group, and the Global Food Security (GFS) programme’s Sian Williams explore the evolving research landscape.
Transformation of the food system could lead the way in addressing both climate and health goals. The Global Food Security programme’s Sian Williams introduces a new report.
Following the previous blog from Riaz Bhunnoo, Head of Global Food Security, on the opportunity for further research into food security using a ‘food systems’ approach, Professor Alastair Ager, Deputy Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department for International Development (DFID) explains why there is a need for this cross-cutting research and the challenges he hopes this will address.
The new GCRF hubs call is a huge investment in interdisciplinary research, with plans to fund a dozen £8 million-£20 million grants to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing developing countries. Riaz Bhunnoo, Head of Global Food Security, explains why this presents a great opportunity for research in food security, which cuts across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and necessitates a ‘food systems’ approach.
CRISPR-Cas9 technology provides an extremely precise and powerful tool for modifying genomes with countless potential applications, many of which are in agriculture. The University of Warwick’s Jessica Finch considers what this might mean for food security.
The UK’s fresh fruit and vegetable supply system is vulnerable to water-related risk. Cranfield University’s Chloe Sutcliffe and Tim Hess introduce a new GFS-funded project investigating this issue.
