Is the growth in the world’s population leading to increased hunger?
There is enough food in the world to feed our population of 6.7 billion. It’s not simply a question of supply and demand. Addressing global hunger means looking beyond food production alone, to the marginalisation of small farmers, the inequalities in food distribution and the social injustice perpetuated by the global trading practices controlled by the rich countries of the west. With 75 per cent of hungry people living in rural areas, most people are simply too poor to either grow or buy the food they need. Many are forced to leave their land, or sell it, to till the land for other landowners or to migrate to cities in their search for employment. The latter typically end up in urban slums; often having left their families behind. Even though women produce most of the world’s food, they are much more affected by hunger and poverty than men. Six in ten of those who are hungry are women.
