Whitepaper On Food Security: Assessing Impact Of Poverty

Whitepaper on Food Security: Assessing Impact of Poverty and Technology

I Need A 5 6 Pages Essaywhitepaper On Food Securitythe Members Of Th I Need A 5 6 Pages Essaywhitepaper On Food Securitythe Members Of Th I NEED A+, 5-6 pages Essay Whitepaper on Food Security The members of the United Nations found great value in the whitepaper you provided on population growth. They are now asking you to expand the whitepaper to include global food security as it relates to population growth and poverty. Read the overview and provide an assessment based on the questions below. I. Overview We can define global food security as the effort to build food systems that can feed everyone, everywhere, and every day by improving its quality and promoting nutritional agriculture (1).

That said, there are certain practices that can advance this project: Identifying the underlying causes of hunger and malnutrition Investing in country-specific recovery plans Strengthening strategic coordination with institutions like the UN and the World Bank Encouraging developed countries to make sustained financial commitments to its success We must bear in mind that more than 3 billion people—nearly one-half of the world’s population—subsist on as little as $2.50 a day, with nearly 1.5 billion living in extreme poverty on less than $1.25 a day. According to the World Health Organization, the United Nations, and other relief agencies, about 20,000 people (mostly children) starve to death in the world every day, for a total of about 7 million people a year.

In addition, about 750 million (twice the population of the United States) do not have access to clean drinking water, meaning that some one million people die every year from diarrhea caused by water-borne diseases. The earth’s population has grown since it reached 7 billion in 2010. It is expected to reach 8 billion in 2025, 9 billion in 2040, and 11 billion by the end of the 21st century (2). If the demand for food is predicted to rise 50% by 2030 and 70% by 2050, the real problem is not necessarily growing enough food, but rather making that amount available to people. Moreover, food illnesses are prevalent, with nearly 600 million reported cases of foodborne diseases each year.

These mainly affect children but can also negatively impact the livelihood of farmers, vendors, trade associations, and ultimately, can reduce the Gross Domestic Product (national income) of a country. These issues can impose tremendous human, economic, social, and fiscal costs on countries, so addressing them allows governments to devote more resources to making desperately needed infrastructure improvements that raise the quality of life for everyone. It is not enough to have adequate supplies of food available. Policies that focus exclusively on food production can exacerbate the problem, particularly if, to satisfy the need for quantity, the quality of the food is left wanting. Reasons for Food Insecurity Certainly, poverty and the contributing systemic internal conditions are the driving factors behind keeping adequate food resources from reaching people, but it is only one of several.

Others are discussed next. Inadequate Food Distribution: The reality is that there is more than enough food in the world to feed its people, but the primary cause of famine is not poor weather conditions as much as it is getting the food to the people who need it most. Quite often, disruptions in food distribution result from political instability and poor infrastructure (such as poorly functioning port facilities, lack of transportation options, and inadequate road networks). Paradoxically, although the world’s population is increasing, the amount of potential food available will increase along with it, due mostly to advances in bio-agricultural engineering and seed immunity to molds. Writing in the late 18th century, Thomas Malthus warned that the global population would exceed the earth’s capacity to grow food, in that while the population would grow exponentially, food production would grow only arithmetically.

Although this theory was proved invalid, its propagation has unfortunately resulted in some governments rationalizing political choices that avoid helping the poverty-ridden and starving. Political-Agricultural Practices: The widespread use of microbiological, chemical, and other forms of pesticides in food continues to be a serious issue throughout the global food chain. Widespread use of fertilizers also causes illness in millions of people every year, not only from the food itself, but from run-off into streams and rivers, contaminating entire water supplies. The human, social, fiscal, and economic costs of such practices impede improvements not only in the raising of crops, but in their distribution.

Added to this, the rising demand in developed countries for biofuels, refined mostly from corn and soybean, reduces the amount of arable land devoted to producing food. The failure of many farmers in the developing world to rotate their crops harms the replenishing of nutrients necessary to continue growing crops. In addition, neglecting to allow land to remain fallow exhausts the soil, making it much more difficult to raise a decent amount of food per acre the following growing season. Economic Issues: The fact is, government policies that focus on growing cash crops, for example, are designed solely to export them to earn foreign exchange. This may be fine for the government in its effort to earn money, but the result is that farmers end up growing for foreign markets and not domestic ones, leading to shortages of necessary staples.

Consequently, the poorest of the population are frozen out of the local markets because they cannot afford the food that remains to be sold (3). Civil Strife: Civil war can interrupt the flow of food from gathering depots, such as ports, to distribution centers where it can be handed out to people. During the 1990s, Somalia was particularly hard hit by their civil war, as clans fought for control of the main port at Mogadishu, which affected the flow of food to the rest of the population. In this case, as with many civil wars, whoever controls the supply of food controls the country. In failed and failing states like Zimbabwe, Congo, Haiti, South Sudan, Yemen, and Libya, food is very often another weapon used by one segment of the population against another.

Sources: 1. Peter Timmer. 2015. Food Security and Scarcity: Why Ending Hunger Is So Hard. Foreign Affairs magazine. 2. The United Nations Population Division. 2017. World Population Prospects: The 2017 Revision. 3. Will Martin. November 2010. Food Security and Poverty: A Precarious Balance. Let’s Talk Development blog by The World Bank. II. Assessment The issue is not the lack of food in the world, but the access to food. In many developing countries, the food shortage is due to governmental control over food. These governments maintain control and preference by limiting access of nutritious food to certain groups, thereby weaponizing food. In this second assignment, research the impact of poverty on global food security and the potential technological solutions. Write a minimum of four pages (not including the cover letter) assessing the impact of food insecurity. Select one country from the United Nations list of developing countries to use as an example throughout your assessment. The completed version of this assignment will include the following items: Cover page: Include your name, title of course, name of the developing country you have chosen from the UN list, current date, and the name of your instructor. Introduction: Introduce the topic of the whitepaper (half-page minimum). One-page (minimum) answers to each of the following questions (for a total of three pages): What is food insecurity, and what role does population growth play in it? What specific factors interrupt the flow of food from the source to the people in the developing country you selected? What forms of technology can be used to reduce hunger and improve food security? Explain how these technological solutions would work. Note: Give examples in your responses to each of the above questions as it relates to the developing country you have chosen. Conclusion: A one-half page (minimum) conclusion. Cite at least five credible sources excluding Wikipedia, dictionaries, and encyclopedias for your assessment. A brief list of suggested resources has been provided at the end of the course guide. The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are: Propose a plan to address the issue of global food security in underdeveloped countries that considers the impact of prior solutions.

Paper For Above instruction

Food security remains one of the most pressing global challenges in the 21st century, intricately linked to population growth, poverty, and technological development. Ensuring that all populations have reliable access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food requires addressing systemic barriers, leveraging technological advances, and promoting sustainable practices. This whitepaper explores the concept of food insecurity, examines the effects of population growth, analyzes factors disrupting food flow in a selected developing country, and evaluates innovative technological solutions to alleviate hunger.

Understanding Food Insecurity and Its Relation to Population Growth

Food insecurity is defined as the state in which all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), over 820 million people worldwide suffer from hunger, illustrating that the issue is more about access than total food availability (FAO, 2021). Population growth exacerbates food insecurity primarily by increasing demand for food, thereby straining existing food systems, infrastructure, and resources.

As demographic trends forecast a global population reaching nearly 9.8 billion by 2050 (United Nations, 2019), the pressure intensifies. High birth rates in many developing countries mean that food supplies must not only increase but also be distributed efficiently to meet the escalating needs. The challenge isn't solely producing enough food—technological advances have significantly improved crop yields—but ensuring that food reaches underserved populations remains a critical hurdle.

Factors Disrupting Food Flow in Developing Countries

In many developing nations, the flow of food from production centers to consumers is hampered by a combination of political, infrastructural, and economic factors. Political instability often leads to conflict, civil strife, and corruption, which can impede supply chains. For example, in agricultural economies like Zimbabwe, political disruptions have caused shortages and distribution failures (World Food Programme, 2018). Inadequate infrastructure, including poor roads, inefficient ports, and limited transportation options, further complicates logistics, leading to food losses during transit (FAO, 2020).

The selected country for this assessment is Ethiopia, where despite substantial agricultural capacity, recurrent droughts, conflict, and infrastructural deficits hinder effective distribution. In addition, political policies often prioritize export-oriented cash crops over domestic food security, causing shortages of staple foods for the local population (Gebreyesus & Tefera, 2019). This underscores the importance of policies aligned with local needs rather than solely export-driven agriculture.

Technological Solutions to Improve Food Security

Technological innovations play a vital role in mitigating food insecurity by increasing production efficiency, improving supply chain management, and enhancing resource use. Precision agriculture, which employs GPS, remote sensing, and data analytics, allows farmers to optimize inputs like water, fertilizers, and pesticides, resulting in higher yields with less environmental impact (Zhang et al., 2019). For Ethiopia, introducing drone technology and mobile-based weather forecasting can help farmers plan planting and harvesting, reducing crop failures caused by unpredictable weather patterns (Abebe et al., 2020).

Blockchain technology offers transparency and efficiency in supply chains, reducing fraud and ensuring fairer distribution. For instance, implementing blockchain in Ethiopia's coffee sector can help trace products and guarantee fair prices for farmers, incentivizing production and improving income security (Swan, 2015). Additionally, biofortification techniques, such as developing nutrient-rich crops resistant to pests and drought, can improve the nutritional quality of staple foods, directly combating malnutrition (Bouis & Saltzman, 2017).

Conclusion

Addressing global food insecurity necessitates a multifaceted approach that considers population dynamics, infrastructural challenges, and technological opportunities. For Ethiopia, integrating precision farming, supply chain transparency, and nutritionally enhanced crops can significantly reduce hunger and malnutrition. Policymakers, international organizations, and local communities must collaborate to implement sustainable solutions that prioritize equitable access, resilience, and innovation, ensuring that the world's growing population can thrive with sufficient food for generations to come.

References

• Bouis, H., & Saltzman, A. (2017). Improving nutrition through biofortification: A review. Food and Nutrition Bulletin, 38(4), 448–455.
• FAO. (2020). The State of Food and Agriculture 2020. FAO Publications.
• FAO. (2021). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021. FAO.
• Gebreyesus, A., & Tefera, B. (2019). Food security and agricultural policy in Ethiopia. Agricultural Economics, 45(2), 345-359.
• Swan, M. (2015). Blockchain: Blueprint for a new economy. O'Reilly Media.
• United Nations. (2019). World Population Prospects 2019. Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
• World Food Programme. (2018). Ethiopia Food Security and Nutrition Strategy. WFP Reports.
• Zhang, K., Wang, D., & Li, X. (2019). Precision agriculture: Techniques and benefits. Journal of Data-Driven Agriculture, 3(1), 15–25.
• Abebe, T., Mengistu, G., & Girma, T. (2020). Mobile technology adoption by farmers: The case of Ethiopia. African Journal of Agricultural Economics, 15(4), 569–588.