Summary
Food security is the availability of food in a country (or geography) and the ability of individuals within that country (geography) to access, afford, and source adequate foodstuffs. According to the United Nations Committee on World Food Security, food security is defined as meaning that all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy life. The availability of food irrespective of class, gender or region is another element of food security. There is evidence of food security being a concern many thousands of years ago, with central authorities in ancient China and ancient Egypt being known to release food from storage in times of famine. At the 1974 World Food Conference, the term "food security" was defined with an emphasis on supply; food security is defined as the "availability at all times of adequate, nourishing, diverse, balanced and moderate world food supplies of basic foodstuffs to sustain a steady expansion of food consumption and to offset fluctuations in production and prices". Later definitions added demand and access issues to the definition. The first World Food Summit, held in 1996, stated that food security "exists when 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." Similarly, household food security is considered to exist when all members, at all times, have access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Individuals who are food secure do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. Food insecurity, on the other hand, is defined by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a situation of "limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways".
About this result
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
Related courses (16)
ENG-436: Food biotechnology
The course will deliver basic knowledge on the principles of food fermentation and enzyme technology. The course will also present benefits that food biotechnology can bring in terms of Nutrition & He
HUM-120(a): Global issues: food A
Le cours présente divers enjeux liés à l'alimentation: production durable, sécurité alimentaire, nutrition et santé, enjeux sociaux et culturels. L'approche interdisciplinaire intègre les SHS et les s
HUM-120(b): Global issues: food B
Le cours présente les enjeux liés à l'alimentation: production durable, sécurité alimentaire, sécurité sanitaire et liens entre alimentation et santé. L'approche interdisciplinaire intègre les SHS et
Show more