The SOFI data paints a worrying picture: Food insecurity has taken hold at catastrophically high levels with no progress in sight – setting the world back 15 years.[2] 735 million people (9.2 percent of the world population) faced chronic undernourishment in 2022, and nearly 30% of the world's population experienced moderate or severe food insecurity. [...] The cost of living crisis is taking a heavy toll, with the cost of a healthy diet now nearly 7% higher than in 2019, and out of reach for nearly half the world population – showing governments and the food industry are failing to get decent, healthy food to where it is needed. [...] “We desperately need a new recipe for addressing hunger – based on the right to food, less reliance on volatile global markets, and on countries producing more food for their own people.” Olivier De Schutter, co-chair of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food), and UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, reacted: “Once again the world is plague. [...] To have any hope of reaching the Sustainable Development Goals a transformation is needed – with social protection schemes that guarantee the right to food for the world’s poorest, debt cancellation, and investment in diverse, resilient agroecological food production.” Million Belay, expert with IPES-Food and coordinator of the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), reacted: “It’s shockin. [...] The dominant food system is reducing people’s resilience to shocks and leading to perpetual debt and food dumping – this must change.” [3] IPES-Food calls for more diverse and resilient food systems to better withstand shocks, reduce import dependencies, and enable communities to feed themselves in the face of climate change; as well as urgent debt relief for heavily indebted low-income countries.
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