Abstract
This chapter discusses the human right to food and nutrition security. Sustainable food and nutrition security has four key components: the nutritional quality of foods and diets, their cost, cultural acceptance, and their impact on the environment. Sustainable diets call for foods that are healthy and safe, nutrient-rich, affordable, culturally acceptable, and appealing. The environmental impact of the food supply system must be considered and steps taken to minimize the impact of eating patterns on land, water, and energy use. Nutrient density of processed foods is another matter for concern. Given global economic pressures, the effects of climate change, marketing considerations and other factors, there is a growing trend for the agricultural and food industries to produce foods that are inexpensive sources of calories but have minimal nutritional value. Food and nutrition insecurity and malnutrition are widespread in many low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). They also exist to a lesser extent in some high-income countries (HIC). While the public health focus has been on diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs), hidden hunger and dietary deficiency diseases must be identified and managed both in LMIC and in HIC. Effective management of resources by both the public and the private sector will be required to develop a sustainable food supply and to ensure equitable access to nutrient-rich foods by vulnerable groups. Political will, along with adequate economic and human resources, will be essential to achieve this.
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Dwyer, J.T., Drewnowski, A. (2017). Overview: Food and Nutrition Security. In: Biesalski, H., Drewnowski, A., Dwyer, J., Strain, J., Weber, P., Eggersdorfer, M. (eds) Sustainable Nutrition in a Changing World. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55942-1_1
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