Welcome to the second blog post in our series on the interconnections between food systems and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this post, we take a critical look at the limitations of the SDGs in addressing the complexities of food sustainability and security. The United Nations' SDGs were adopted in 2015 as a global framework to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.

Welcome to our blog post series on sustainable development and food security. In this series, we will explore the interconnections between food systems and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). By understanding these linkages, we can work towards achieving a more sustainable and food-secure world. The SDGs, adopted by the United Nations in 2015^1,2, provide a comprehensive framework for addressing global challenges and advancing sustainable development.

International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate the achievements of women in all areas of life, and to recognize the continued struggles and obstacles that they face in achieving gender equality. In the realm of sustainability and food systems, women have played a crucial role in driving the transition to more sustainable and just food systems in Europe. One project that highlights this is FEAST, which seeks to engage diverse stakeholders, including vulnerable groups, to co-design sustainable and healthy food solutions at all levels of the food system.

In the previous blog we highlighted some of the key policy mechanisms that have been used to address food insecurity for key food system actors:
Agricultural producers > Price Incentives, Fiscal Support
Food environment > General Services Support, Other support
Consumers > Fiscal Support

In the second blog in this series, we outlined the state of food insecurity across the world.  A key takeaway was that in 2021, 2.3 billion people globally were moderately or severely food insecure.  As highlighted in the last blog: “The increase in food prices and stagnant wages made food unaffordable for large proportions of the global population – in 2022 this has been made even worse because of the war in Ukraine and the inflation and cost of living crisis.”  

In our first blog in this series, we outlined some of the key terms linked to food security.  In this blog, we will give an overview of some of the key findings of the FAO report - The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022 - focusing on food insecurity trends across the world between 2014-2021.

In this first series of blog posts, we will focus on a recent report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) entitled The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022. The report outlines the current levels of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition globally and outlines the barriers and facilitators that could be used to make progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2: Zero Hunger.  It is a long and important report with a lot of rich information that gives much food for thought!