11 - Urban Food Security in Asia: A Growing Threat

Abstract

Urban food security is emerging as a dominant area of global developmental policy deliberations. By 2020, more than half of the Asian population will reside in urban centers, and as a result, the demand for food will be high. Characteristically, these urban centers rely on the neighboring peri-urban and rural areas for agriculture-based food products. As these cities seamlessly merge into their peripheral areas, agricultural lands are being converted into urban environments to meet the increasing demand for residential land. This trend negatively impacts the local food supply, resulting in an increasing dependency on the national and global supply chain. Considering Asia’s high vulnerability to natural hazards, its urban centers are exposed to food security threats from both localized and distant disaster events. Thus, strengthening the supply chain and food storage will reduce food security and enhance urban resilience in the process. This chapter focuses on the issues of food security in terms of diminishing urban agriculture land. Comparative analyses of cases from developing urban centers in Asia are discussed in order to highlight the commonalities and differences employed to devise strategies that could enhance food security.