Implications For Food Security Research Articles

The role of improved market access for small-scale organic farming transition: Implications for food security

Better access to markets allows small producers to reliably sell more produce, at higher prices and with better quality. Following the recognition of the importance of production-marketing nexus, it is, therefore, necessary to investigate the role of efficient markets for small-scale organic farming, more so, whether the orientation of the farmers to market will have any implications for the food security welfare of the farmers. Using survey data from rural Nigeria, this paper applies a multiple-treatment endogenous switching regression framework to control for the potential endogeneity of market orientation and the adoption of organic farming, hence evaluated the moderating effects of market orientation on the relationship between organic farming adoption and food security. We find that market orientation has a positive and significant effect on the food security of both the farmers who adopt and those who did not adopt organic farming. Also, the study found that market orientation positively moderates the effect of organic farming on food security. Although the adoption of organic farming has a significant positive effect on food security irrespective of their market orientation, its effect is higher among farmers who are market-oriented than farmers that are not market-oriented. This result suggests efforts in the transition to organic farming among smallholder farmers can benefit policies and programmes aimed at integrating them into more inclusive and profitable market systems.

Capitalism, Imperialism and the Food Question

The success and failure of capitalism have been commonly measured by the yardsticks of industrialisation, technical progress and innovations in the financial markets. The emergence of industrial agriculture under successful capitalist transitions is supposed to have taken care of all food and raw material constraints that could have arrested the development of industrial economies and societies in the North. Simultaneously, the problems of underdevelopment and food insecurity in the South is attributed to internal constraints and barriers. The work of Utsa Patnaik challenges these views as she explored multiple aspects of the contribution of colonies to the advance of capital accumulation in the North. She delves into the nineteenth century ‘international division of labour’, the role of tropical food and raw materials exports by commercialised southern agriculture and implication for food security in the colonies. The objective of this article is to engage with the anti-imperial scholarship of Utsa Patnaik with a specific focus on the food question in capitalism. The article traces the evolution of the food question as capitalism evolved and dominated the world economy. JEL Codes: P1, F54, Q18

FACTORS INFLUENCING ALLOCATIVE EFFICIENCY OF SMALLSCALE TOMATO (LYCOPERSICUM SPECIES) PRODUCTION IN KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA: IMPLICA TIONS FOR FOOD SECURITY AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

This study evaluated factors influencing allocative efficiency of smallscale tomato (Lycopersicum species) production in Kaduna State, Nigeria: implications for food security and resource management. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 120 smallscale tomato farmers. Data of primary sources were collected with the help of a well-structured and a well-designed questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Result indicates that the mean age of smallscale tomato resource farmers were 46 years, the mean household size of the respondents was 7 persons, while the mean resource farm size was 1.17ha. The minimum and the maximum allocative efficiency score of the tomato farmers were 0.30 and 0.93 respectively. The results of profitability analysis indicate that tomato production was profitable with gross margin and net farm income of N550,960 per ha and N497,190 respectively. The gross margin and operating ratios were 0.69 and 0.28 respectively. The resource inputs and socio-economic factors influencing allocative efficiency of tomato production were: age (P < 0.01), farm size (P < 0.01), household size (P < 0.01), gender (P < 0.05), marital status (P < 0.01), level of education (P < 0.10), access to extension services (P < 0.05), and membership of cooperative organization (P < 0.05). The study recommended that farmers should be provided with the following resource inputs: improved seeds, chemicals, fertilizer input, credit facilities and extension services in order to reduce resource wastages, increase efficiency and productivity.

Examining ozone susceptibility in the genus Musa (bananas).

Tropospheric ozone (O3 ) is a global air pollutant that adversely affects plant growth. Whereas the impacts of O3 have previously been examined for some tropical commodity crops, no information is available for the pantropical crop, banana (Musa spp.). To address this, we exposed Australia's major banana cultivar, Williams, to a range of [O3 ] in open top chambers. In addition, we examined 46 diverse Musa lines growing in a common garden for variation in three traits that are hypothesised to shape responses to O3 : (1) leaf mass per area; (2) intrinsic water use efficiency; and (3) total antioxidant capacity. We show that O3 exposure had a significant effect on the biomass of cv. Williams, with significant reductions in both pseudostem and sucker biomass with increasing [O3 ]. This was accompanied by a significant increase in total antioxidant capacity and phenolic concentrations in older, but not younger, leaves, indicating the importance of cumulative O3 exposure. Using the observed trait diversity, we projected O3 tolerance among the 46 Musa lines growing in the common garden. Of these, cv. Williams ranked as one of the most O3 -tolerant cultivars. This suggests that other genetic lines could be even more susceptible, with implications for banana production and food security throughout the tropics.

Five U.S. Dietary Patterns and Their Relationship to Land Use, Water Use, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Implications for Future Food Security.

The U.S. agri-food system is a driver of climate change and other impacts. In order to achieve environmental targets that limit global mean temperature rise ≤2 °C, a shift in American dietary patterns is critical. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to determine the environmental impact (i.e., land use, water use, and GHG emissions) related to consumption of five U.S. dietary patterns (i.e., Current U.S., the Healthy U.S., Mediterranean, Healthy Vegetarian, and Vegan), and (2) to determine the specific impact of each food group in each dietary pattern on the three environmental indicators. This study utilized existing datasets to synthesize information related to the study's environmental indicators and food production and connected these data to the current U.S. diet and the USDA-defined diets. Results indicate that the three omnivore diets contributed the greatest to GHG emissions, land use and water use. The Vegan diet scored the lowest across all indicators, although the water required for plant-based protein nearly offset other water gains. For the omnivore diets, red meat and dairy milk contributed the most to each environmental indicator. By considering sustainability as well as health outcomes in their recommendations in the Dietary Guidelines, the USDA can have a critical role in shifting diets necessary to alter climate change trends.

Analysis of the factors influencing the stability of stored grains: Implications for agricultural sustainability and food security

The recent unprecedented situations like the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have severely impacted food security and grain production in emerging economies. These countries can try to import grains to enhance secure food security, but this will strain their dollar reserve and endanger their financial stability. Under such circumstances, the adoption of sustainable grain storage practices is essential to reducing the unusual gap between grain production and grain availability. This research, therefore, explores the key factors that may affect the stability of stored grains to promote agricultural sustainability and food security in emerging economies. First, the study identifies the significant factors that influence the stability of stored grains from an emerging economy perspective. Then, the study employs an integrated approach consisting of Pareto analysis, fuzzy-based Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM), and Cross-Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC) analysis. Based on the literature review and expert feedback, nineteen factors were initially identified. After employing Pareto analysis, the top thirteen factors have been further analyzed using fuzzy TISM- fuzzy MICMAC to examine their interrelationships. The study findings indicate that “Proper training on advanced storage operations” is the most significant factor influencing sustainable grain storage operations. The study insights can help practitioners to focus more on the crucial aspects of the grain storage operation and can assist the policymakers and industry leaders of emerging economies in strategic decision-making to achieve agricultural sustainability and thus improve food security.

The impact of migration on food security in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia: The role of migration patterns and remittances

Food insecurity continues to be a major international concern aggravated by the economic crisis, pandemics, violent conflicts and war. In the past decade, scholars have highlighted the role of migration in household food security, yet the interrelationships between migration and food security have shown disconnections in the literature. This study is therefore intended to provide empirical evidence of the food security–migration nexus in the case of Ethiopia’s Tigray region. Mixed-methods approaches were used in the study, including semi-structured household and expert interviews and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA). The study demonstrates that migration, through the flow of both financial and social remittance, has a positive impact on household food security. Based on the results, remittances contribute to household food security in a variety of ways, including facilitating the acquisition of consumable goods, diversifying sources of income, and funding the purchase of production-related inputs and health insurance, housing, and other household goals. Furthermore, the findings establish that migration is a reaction to a variety of circumstances, primarily prompted by economic factors, such as a desire to enhance one’s standard of life, high levels of poverty, high unemployment, low agricultural yields, and food crises. The study concludes that migration has dual implications for household food security: on the one hand, migration as a response strategy to food insecurity, and on the other hand, migration as a form of vulnerability to household food insecurity, demonstrating the reciprocal relationship between food security and migration.

Resilience capacities and implications for food security in Zimbabwe

There is an emerging body of studies assessing the influence of resilience on household food security in developing countries. Yet no study has systematically analysed this theme in Zimbabwe, an area that we address. Data was collected from 331 randomly selected farm households in four districts of Zimbabwe. Factor analysis was used to compute resilience capacities. Poisson regression was used for model estimations. Assets, market diversity and social capital increased dietary diversity by 7.5%, 3.6% and 2.9% respectively. Interventions that enhance asset accumulation, for example incomegenerating activities, should be promoted. Promoting farmer groups and collective actions are important to strengthen social capital. Adaptive and absorptive capacity increases dietary diversity by 5.9% and 5.4% respectively. Household resilience is positively associated with dietary diversity. The public and private sectors and civil society need to promote interventions that build adaptive, absorptive, and overall resilience capacity of farming households to enhance food security.

Impacts of Climate Change on Small Pelagic Fish Catches in the Coastal Artisanal Fishers Communities of Tanzania

Climate-related effects occur across all regions in Tanzania, affecting primary sectors such as agriculture and fishing. This study investigated the impacts of climatic change on small pelagic catches in fishers in Kilindoni, Kipumbwi and Kilwa Kivinje villages along the Tanzanian coast. We studied how changes in rainfall, sea surface temperature, wind speed and chlorophyll a affect small pelagic fisheries using primary and secondary data. Qualitative and quantitative methods were applied. Primary data collection involved questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Secondary data was obtained from Tanzania Meteorological Agency and remote sensing from Modi's sensor. Results showed an increase in sea surface temperature (tau = 0.0151, 0.0121, 0.0238 for Kilindoni, Kilwa Kivinje and Kipumbwi, respectively) and unpredictable changes in rainfall patterns which affected small pelagic fisheries. The average rainfall was 284.6, 97.5 and 56.4 mm in Kilindoni, Kilwa Kivinje and Kipumbwi, respectively. In recent years, rain has been unreliable compared to the past 20 years. Unpredictable rainfall, increased sea surface temperature, wind speed and chlorophyll a had negatively impacted the small pelagic fishery. There was a strong relationship between the decline of small pelagic catches and climatic variables. The findings of this study have implications for coastal fisher's livelihood, income and food security.
 Keywords: Coastal communities; small pelagic fishery; climate change; fisheries; livelihood

It’s time for reimagining the future of food security in sub–Saharan Africa: Gender-Smallholder Agriculture-Climate Change nexus

There is an ongoing debate regarding how to feed Sub-Saharan Africa's fast rising population in the long run, as well as the implications for food security. To maintain food security, various strategies have been recommended, including a focus on the significance of diversifying and improving people's diets. Proposals have been tabled elsewhere with a primary focus on enhancing agricultural inputs and technology adoption in order to increase agricultural production and productivity, hence strengthening food security. The current opinion piece attempts to contribute to this debate by examining smallholder agriculture and its role to African food security. This discussion proposes a future paradigm shift toward a gendered climate-smart smallholder agriculture and food production and security conceptual framework based on the promotion and development of smallholder agriculture and food production and security. Therefore, it's predicated that the micro-livestock-centered approach can remodel smallholder agrarian households and communities toward a gender-inclusive global climate change adaptive smallholder agriculture to strengthen production, supply, and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. For Africa, today’s predicament is to ensure food security for the anticipated rapid population expansion, while on the other hand handling an overall net adverse effect of worldwide global climate change, and increased socio-economic ills associated with gender inequality in smallholder agriculture and ensuring long-term agriculture sustainable development. The failure to address gender inequality in smallholder agriculture and food production and pontificate of global climate change effect has thrown Sub-Saharan Africa into a state of perpetual food scarcity and insecurity because of low agricultural productivity and food supply, and by force of circumstances exposing the agricultural communities and its people to extreme poverty and nutrition and food insecurity. Therefore, it's predicated that the micro-livestock-centered approach can remodel smallholder agrarian households and communities toward a gender-inclusive global climate change adaptive smallholder agriculture to strengthen production, supply, and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. For this purpose, this discussion proposes a future paradigm shift towards a gendered climate-smart smallholder agriculture and food production and security conceptual framework hinged on the promotion and development of the micro-livestock and/or unconventional animal species sub-sector to strengthen food security on the continent. Overall, the discussion emphasizes the importance of taking immediate action to alleviate the negative effects of climate change and address gender inequality through promotion of micro livestock to assist in the development of long-term adaptation measures to maintain smallholder agricultural productivity.

Adapting to a changing climate: indigenous biotic rainfall forecasting in Western Zambia.

Forecasting rainfall at the local scale to inform farm-level decisions is complex and it remains an unresolved problem with dire implications for food security. Here, we examine indigenous knowledge forecasting systems used by smallholder farmers in Maondo Agriculture Camp (MAC) of Sesheke District in the Western Province of Zambia to increase their climate change adaptive capacity at the farm level. We adopted a qualitative approach that uses an exploratory-descriptive design. We then used purposive sampling, a non-probability methodological approach, to choose respondents. We applied semi-structured interviews and questionnaires as data collection tools and examined the data using thematic content analysis. We found that > 50% of small-scale farmers receive forecasts produced by the Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD) through stakeholders' meetings. Farmers who do not receive ZMD forecasts depend on indigenous knowledge systems. Results further indicate that farmers in the MAC combine several indicators to predict rainfall. Prominent among them include plants, weather-related parameters, and astrological indicators. A cursory inspection of these rainfall predictors revealed several points specifically highlighting three salient thematic contents, i.e. biological, meteorological, and astrological. Results further showed that both conventional science and indigenous knowledge used to forecast rainfall have strengths and weaknesses. We, therefore, conclude that the integration of the two methods has the potential to significantly improve rainfall forecasts and ultimately agricultural productivity at the farm level.

Analyzing past and future trends in Pakistan's groundwater irrigation development: implications for environmental sustainability and food security.

Since the last four decades, groundwater irrigation has played a critical role in improving crop production and rural livelihoods. However, the flawed policies have allowed farmers to install private tube wells relentlessly, resulting in a slew of water quality and environmental issues. This study aims to investigate the key trends in temporal development of groundwater irrigation and its consequences in Pakistan. The dataset, which spanned 38years (1981 to 2018), included variables such as the number of tube wells, wheat area and production, farm size, total cultivated area, and total irrigated area in Punjab province. Our results show that, while the number of government-installed tube wells has decreased over time, the number of private tube wells has increased by 579% since 1981. About 85% of these privately owned tube wells are diesel tube wells, while the remaining 15% are electric tube wells. The ARDL regression results show that groundwater development, as a result of growth in private tube wells, has significantly aided wheat production in both the short and long run. However, the results of ARIMA model show that, in the absence of any regulatory mechanism to limit private tube well growth, the number of private tube wells in Punjab will increase by 43% over the next two decades, potentially jeopardizing the country's groundwater sustainability and food security. To ensure the sustainability of groundwater use, farmers' incomes, and the food security of the population, there is an urgent need to devise policy options to limit the growth of probate tube wells in the province. In addition, the new regulations should consider the equity implications and the economic shock to poor farms and households.

Energy and food security implications of transitioning synthetic nitrogen fertilizers to net-zero emissions

By synthetically producing nitrogen fertilizers from ammonia (NH3), the Haber–Bosch process has been feeding humanity for more than one hundred years. However, current NH3 production relies on fossil fuels, and is energy and carbon intensive. This commits humanity to emissions levels not compatible with climate goals and commits agricultural production to fossil fuels dependency. Here, we quantify food and energy implications of transitioning nitrogen fertilizers to net-zero CO2 emissions. We find that 1.07 billion people are fed from food produced from imported nitrogen fertilizers. An additional 710 million people are fed from imported natural gas feedstocks used for fertilizers production, meaning that 1.78 billion people per year are fed from imports of either fertilizers or natural gas. These findings highlight the reliance of global food production on trading and fossil fuels, hence its vulnerability to supply and energy shocks. However, alternative routes to achieve net-zero emissions in NH3 production exist, which are based on carbon capture and storage, electrification, and biomass. These routes comply with climate targets while mitigating the risks associated with food security. Yet, they require more land, energy, and water than business-as-usual production, exacerbating land and water scarcity and the use of limited natural resources. Transitioning fertilizers to net-zero emissions can contribute to climate and food security goals, although water, land, and energy trade-offs should be considered.

Women’s role of caregiving for under-five children: Implications for dietary diversity and food security in Ghana

Women’s role of caregiving for under-five children: Implications for dietary diversity and food security in Ghana

Mapping of Tilapia Lake Virus entry pathways with inhibitors reveals dependence on dynamin activity and cholesterol but not endosomal acidification.

Tilapia Lake Virus (TiLV) is an emerging virus lethal to tilapia, which threatens the global tilapia aquaculture with severe implications for food security. TiLV possesses similar features to orthomyxoviruses but is classified in the sole and the monotypic genus Tilapinevirus of the family Amnoonviridae. TiLV enveloped virions encapsidate a genome comprising ten segments of single-stranded, negative RNA. Remarkably, nine of TiLV's ten major proteins lack sequence homology to any known viral or cellular proteins. The mode of TiLV entry into tilapia cells is not known. Following the measurement of the entry window of TiLV (∼3h), we applied a panel of inhibitors of known regulators of endocytic functions to map the molecular requirements for TiLV entry. We identified productive entry by quantification of TiLV nucleoprotein expression and the generation of infectious particles. Inhibition of dynamin activity with dynasore or dynole, or depletion of cholesterol with methyl-β-cyclodextrin, strongly inhibited TiLV protein synthesis and infectious virion production. Moreover, inhibition of actin cytoskeleton polymerization with latrunculin A or microtubule polymerization with nocodazole within the entry window resulted in partial inhibition of TiLV infection. In contrast, inhibitors of endosomal acidification (NH4Cl, bafilomycin A1, or chloroquine), an inhibitor of clathrin-coated pit assembly (pitstop 2), and erlotinib-an inhibitor of the endocytic Cyclin G-associated kinase (GAK), did not affect TiLV entry. Altogether, these results suggest that TiLV enters via dynamin-mediated endocytosis in a cholesterol-, cytoskeleton-dependent manner, and clathrin-, pH-independent manner. Thus, despite being an orthomyxo-like virus, when compared to the prototypical orthomyxovirus (influenza A virus), TiLV shows a distinct set of requirements for entry into cells.

Food trade among Pacific Island countries and territories: implications for food security and nutrition

BackgroundThere is growing attention to intra-regional trade in food. However, the relationship between such trade and food and nutrition is understudied. In this paper, we present an analysis of intra-regional food trade in the Pacific region, where there are major concerns regarding the nutritional implications of international food trade. Using a new regional database, we examine trends in food trade among Pacific Island Counties and Territories (PICTs) relative to extra-regional trade.ResultsIntra-regional trade represents a small, but increasing proportion of total imports. The major food group traded within the Pacific is cereal grains and flour, which represented 51% of total intra-regional food trade in 2018. Processed and prepared foods, sweetened or flavoured beverages, processed fish, and sugar and confectionary are also traded in large quantities among PICTs. Trade in root crops is negligible, and overall intra-regional trade of healthy foods is limited, both in terms of tonnage and relative to imports from outside the region. Fiji remains the main source of intra-regional imports into PICTs, particularly for non-traditional staple foods.ConclusionsThis study highlights the growth in trade of staple foods intra-regionally, indicating a role for Fiji (in particular) in regional food security. Within this overall pattern, there is considerable opportunity to enhance intra-regional trade in traditional staple foods, namely root crops. Looking forward, the current food system disruption arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and associated policy measures has highlighted the long-term lack of investment in agriculture, and suggests an increased role for regional approaches in fostering trade in healthy foods.

The Impact of Farmers’ Adaptation to Climate Change on Rice Yields: Implications for Sustainable Food Systems

Remarkable agricultural productivity gains have been achieved during the last several decades as a result of green revolution (GR) technologies that have greatly increased food production and reduced hunger. However, climate change threatens to reverse the progress made so far in the fight against food insecurity. The agricultural sector in many developing countries, including the rice and wheat producers such as in Punjab (Pakistan and India), is highly vulnerable to climate change, which has serious implications for rural livelihoods and food security. Adaptation is considered a key tool to tackle climate challenges at the farm level and is, therefore, the focus of this study in terms of its impact on rice yields. A household survey was conducted in the Punjab province of Pakistan, and farmers were interviewed face-to-face. We employed a simultaneous equations model to assess the differential impacts of climate change adaptation on adapting and non-adapting farmers’ rice yields. Using the cross-sectional data of 480 rice growers, an endogenous switching regression model provided a means to estimate the selection bias of farmers’ attributes. The results show a significant positive impact of adaptations on rice yields. Specifically, the yield of farmers who adapted to climate change was 24% higher than the non-adapting farmers. The results further indicate that non-adapters can also benefit from the adaptation strategies if they decide to adapt. We also found a significant positive effect of farmers’ climate risk perceptions, literacy level, access to irrigation, ownership of livestock, and availability of farm advisory services on their adaptation decisions. These results, therefore, suggest that policymakers should take into account farmers’ local adaptation knowledge and farming practices when formulating adaptation policies.

Trends and progress in sorghum research over two decades, and implications for global food security

Trends and progress in sorghum research over two decades, and implications for global food security

Reassessing the food security implications of export-oriented aquaculture in Bangladesh

Reassessing the food security implications of export-oriented aquaculture in Bangladesh

Global expansion of sustainable irrigation limited by water storage

Providing affordable and nutritious food to a growing and increasingly affluent global population requires multifaceted approaches to target supply and demand aspects. On the supply side, expanding irrigation is key to increase future food production, yet associated needs for storing water and implications of providing that water storage, remain unknown. Here, we quantify biophysical potentials for storage-fed sustainable irrigation-irrigation that neither depletes freshwater resources nor expands croplands but requires water to be stored before use-and study implications for food security and infrastructure. We find that water storage is crucial for future food systems because 460 km3/yr of sustainable blue water, enough to grow food for 1.15 billion people, can only be used for irrigation after storage. Even if all identified future dams were to contribute water to irrigation, water stored in dammed reservoirs could only supply 209 ± 50 km3/yr to irrigation and grow food for 631 ± 145 million people. In the face of this gap and the major socioecologic externalities from future dams, our results highlight limits of gray infrastructure for future irrigation and urge to increase irrigation efficiency, change to less water-intensive cropping systems, and deploy alternative storage solutions at scale.