International Food Research Articles

IMPACT OF THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE CRISIS ON FOOD INFLATION AND STOCK MARKETS IN ASIAN ECONOMIES: WITH REFERENCE TO INDIA, CHINA, JAPAN AND THAILAND

The current geopolitical risk posed by the Russia-Ukraine war has significant implications on the stock markets and the commodities markets of several countries. Using monthly data from October 2020 to the present time period, we analyse the impact of Russia-Ukraine crisis on food inflation and stock market return volatility in the context of Asian countries, namely, India, China, Japan and Thailand with the help of regression analysis based on the OLS technique. Our main findings show us the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on the food inflation to be visible in China and Japan whereas the war's effect on the stock markets of all the countries selected is shown to be insignificant. We observe the highest and lowest monthly food inflation in China, the highest monthly stock return volatility in Thailand and the lowest monthly stock return volatility in Japan among the selected countries. For the case of India, the war doesn't have much effect on its food inflation and stock market return volatility. We suggest reducing food import dependency by strengthening domestic production and going for alternative food suppliers so as to not be affected by the international food prices that are subjected to the turmoil of war. It is imperative to re-diversify portfolios based on the volatility trend of stock market returns in order to shield oneself from the perils of stock market volatility caused by wars.

The relationship between parent's self-reported exposure to food marketing and child and parental purchasing and consumption outcomes in five countries: findings from the International Food Policy Study.

Food and beverage marketing influences children's food preferences and dietary intake. Children's diets are also heavily influenced by their family environment. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between parent's self-reported exposure to unhealthy food marketing and a range of outcomes related to children's desire for and intake of unhealthy foods and beverages. The study also sought to examine whether these outcomes varied across different countries. The analysed data are from the International Food Policy Study and were collected in 2018 using an online survey. The sample included 5764 parents of children under 18, living in Australia, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, or the United States. Binary logistic regressions assessed the link between the number of parental exposure locations and children's requests for and parental purchases of unhealthy foods. Generalized ordinal regression gauged the relationship between the number of exposure locations and children's consumption of such items. Interaction terms tested if these associations varied by country. Parental exposure to unhealthy food marketing was positively associated with parents reporting child purchase requests and purchase outcomes; and differed by country. Increased parental exposure to unhealthy food marketing was associated with slightly lower odds of children's weekly consumption of unhealthy foods, and this association varied by country. In conclusion, parental report of a greater range of food marketing exposure was associated with a range of outcomes that would increase children's exposure to unhealthy food products or their marketing. Governments should consider developing more comprehensive restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy foods.

Immunonutrition: Diet Diversity, Gut Microbiome and Prevention of Allergic Diseases.

Allergic diseases are increasing both in morbidity and mortality. Genetic, environmental, and dietary factors may all be involved in this increase. Nutrition during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and early life may play a particularly important role in preventing allergic diseases. Based on current systematic reviews, the intake of specific nutrients has failed to prevent allergic disease. Prevention strategies have shifted their focus to the overall diet which can be described using diet diversity. Infant and maternal diet diversity in pregnancy has been associated with reduced allergy outcomes in childhood. Overall, diet also seems to have a marked effect on the microbiome compared to single foods. Factors that may negate the allergy-preventative effect of overall diet diversity include the addition of emulsifiers, advanced glycation end-product content, and overuse of commercial baby foods. There is a need to perform randomized controlled trials using overall dietary intake to support international food allergy guidelines. These studies should ideally be conducted by multi-professional teams.

Evolution of global food trade network and its effects on population nutritional status

Changes in food systems during the last decades fostered the establishment of global food networks based on exchanges between countries with different income levels. Recent studies explored configuration and factors associated with trade networks of specific food items during limited periods; however, there is lack of evidence on evolution of trade networks of foods for human consumption and its potential effects on population nutritional status. We present the evolution of the global trade network of foods for human consumption from 1986 to 2020, according to country income level, and we explore potential effects of country network centrality and globalization processes on the prevalence of overweight and obesity. Results show intensification of international food trade and globalization processes in the period of analysis with implications for population nutritional status worldwide.

Garantindo a segurança alimentar e a competitividade do complexo agroindustrial

Abstract The formation of the Kazakh national agricultural market is complicated by a sharp decline in government assistance to the country's agricultural sector, a decrease in the effectiveness of its regulation, a violation of economic relations between market entities, a drop in effective demand of the population, the disintegration of the economic space of the Commonwealth of Independent States countries, an increase in food imports. The presented study is aimed at considering the regulation of processes and the security of the grocery market and the support by the state of Kazakhstan for its own agro-industrial complex. The following research methods were applied in the study: analysis and synthesis of information, parsing of literature data on the subject of the study, and classification of information and data. The paper discussed the issues of regulating the development and safety of the food market and state aid for the agricultural industry of the republic. Local and international food security was thoroughly studied as a mechanism of national security. In addition, the basic principles were determined of guaranteed supply of the population with necessary foodstuffs at the national level, and food safety in a globalizing world, which has aroused special interest in the research on the competitiveness in the agricultural sector and its management system. The competitive ability of agricultural products from the perspective of economists is the ability to compete on price terms and quality parameters while ensuring steady growth in sales volumes in the internal and external markets. The agro-industrial complex is an important segment of diversification. This research is of practical value for scientists who work and conduct scientific activities in the fields of public catering, agriculture, and the food industry.

Text Mining dan Klasifikasi Sentimen Berbasis Naïve Bayes Pada Opini Masyarakat terhadap Makanan Tradisional

Indonesia has several famous traditional foods and is available in some cities. In addition, several international foods also are interesting to Indonesian. This article analyzes the netizen sentiment for these food categories where the data source is Twitter. The foods are rendang, sate, gudeg, pizza, hamburger, and spaghetti. The text mining approach is adopted to process data. The research steps are data crawling, cleaning, filtering, translating, and splitting. Furthermore, the classifier model based on the Naïve Bayes algorithm is developed. The analysis result shows that the gudeg food reaches a high percentage of positive sentiment with 57,9. Then, the high rate of negative sentiment is achieved by the rendang food with 21,9 %. Moreover, hamburger food obtains a high percentage of neutral sentiment. Meanwhile, the evaluation of classifier model performance shows that the model with the hamburger dataset achieves a high score for accuracy, precision, and recall parameters with 0.72, 0.72, and 0.68 sequentially.

Rediscovery of Common Bean Landraces in Tribal Regions of Balaghat (MP), India

Phaseolus vulgaris L. is one of the most important legume grains for human as well as animal consumption direct and indirect Internationally. This crop shows a great phenotypic variation, which enables its production in a wide range of agroecosystems and cropping systems. These species are considered superfoods, but yet many of them are not part of our diets. In the tribal blocks of Balaghat district of Madhya Pradesh (Baihar, Birsa, Paraswada, Lanji, and Kirnapur) A great genetic diversity in common bean (P. vulgaris) observed in wild populations, traditional varieties, and primitive landraces as well as been maintained at the College of Agriculture in Balaghat (MP).
 The importance of common bean landraces in agriculture cannot be neglected. Beans are rich in a variety of nutrients and a convenient plant source of protein and dietary fiber. Unbalanced food affects billions of people worldwide, leading to malnutrition and socio-economic complications as well. Many primitive landraces have medicinal properties, they contain folate, iron, thiamin, vitamin K, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, and potassium it has an effective impact on human health such as promoting heart health, maintaining blood sugar, enhancing digestive functions, and repairing the body and supporting weight loss. Beans are edible in fresh, And canned forms. Dry beans are rich sources of iron also and this is so important for vegetarians and vegans as substitutes for nutrients from animal sources, especially iron. Conservation of genetic resources of common bean species in suitable banks is an important pillar for international food security.

Processed food exports from developing countries: the effect of food safety compliance

AbstractThe study investigates the impact of developing countries’ ability to comply with international food safety standards on processed food exports, based on the structural gravity modelling framework and a novel dataset from 2002 to 2018. The constructed variable on international food safety compliance is derived from import refusal records from the US Food and Drug Administration. The findings indicate that international food safety compliance is a significant factor in explaining inter-country differences in processed food export performance. The ability to meet international food safety standards matters for processed food exports from developing Asia to developing country markets and the USA, but it has a limited influence on Asian processed food exports to the European Union.

Formation mechanism and sustainable productivity impacts of non‐grain croplands: Evidence from Sichuan Province, China

AbstractNon‐grain cropland is a typical phenomenon with some common characteristics globally. As the most populous country, China's non‐grain cropland threatens global food supply stability and affects food production sustainability under the current complex situation of international food security. This paper used Sichuan Province, China, to explore the formation mechanism of non‐grain cropland and its potential impact on sustainable productivity, given the regional environment complexity and socioeconomic representativeness. High‐precision land survey data were used to detect multiscale non‐grain influencing factors and discuss non‐grain impacts on soil state to fill the knowledge gap on microlevel development of non‐grain issues. Results show that rotation type is the region's most abundant and widely distributed cropland type, accounting for about 59.38% of the total cropland area; the second is abandonment type. Urbanization indicators are the common factors affecting the non‐grain spatial distribution on the global scale; environmental variables' impact on non‐grain shows significant differences in geographical locations on the local scale. Overall, cash type and intercrop type aim at improving production conditions. Rotation type and fallow type mostly occur in areas with low production capacity and are prominently driven by policies. Abandonment type is subject to terrain constraints, production conditions, and social economy. Additionally, non‐grain trends have not caused significant damage to soil sustainable productivity except for the positive promotion of field biodiversity. Non‐grain cropland can be divided into three clusters according to the corresponding average soil fertility state, rotation, intercrop, cash, abandonment, and fallow. Policymakers must implement specific policies for different cropland types and formulate more refined farming management plans.

Fighting Food Waste—Good Old Boys or Young Minds Solutions? Insights from the Young Foodwaste Fighters Club

Food waste is a major problem, and it is estimated that 1/3 of all food is wasted. The climate crisis has fuelled an interest in looking for solutions as well as increased interest from youth to take action. School plays an important role here. The research goal was to explore that role in developing young people’s engagement with food system change. The challenge of food waste was used as a case to create new solutions, while at the same time to create learning. The YouFoo Club program was used for the study and included 4 schools. It built on Project Based Learning, the Knowledge Triangle, and the concepts of 21st century skills; took advantage of scientific and digital principles; ran for 8 weeks; and concluded on International Food Waste Day. A sample of schools was recruited, the process was structured as a case competition, and the end goal was to present the solutions at the final event. The research shows that it is possible to bring youth into solution making, that the process contributed to learning, and that it fitted well with principles of Education for Sustainable Development. The following were found to be drivers: understanding evidence and knowledge, insight into digital technologies, the possibility of being able to work with mentors and role models, the possibility of participating in external projects, the setting of clear performance-oriented end goals, and the understanding of the importance of developing science communication skills.

Joachim von Braun and Rajul Pandya-Lorch (eds.). Food Policy for the Poor: Expanding the Research Frontiers: Highlights from 30 Years of IFPRI Research. Washington, D. C.: IFPRI, 2005. 253 Pages. Price not given.

The research of the past 30 years at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is highlighted in this volume. The topic is food and nutrition security. Of related concern are the development strategies that impact on technologies for agricultural production, resource management, conflicts and natural disasters, subsidies and safety nets, gender roles, and health. The book consists of nine chapters. The first chapter discusses a changing IFPRI in a changing world. The current and future world food situation is analysed and ways are suggested to increase agricultural production and to explore policies for improving production, trade, and distribution of food so that an increase in the quantity and quality of food would be available for all people. IFPRI has heightened its efforts to raise the awareness about emerging food security issues. In particular, its “2020 Vision for Food, Agriculture, and the Environment” initiative is aimed at promoting policy actions that will lead to food and nutrition security.

Risk-sharing in Rural Pakistan

Risk-sharing is a fundamental form of economic behaviour. It can occur through formal insurance markets, informal family arrangements, community support, legal institutions (such as bankruptcy), or government tax-transfer programmes. Whatever the mechanism used to share risk, the extent of risk mitigation can greatly influence the welfare of all members of society. Understanding the degree of risk-pooling in society is important for policy-makers, since insufficient risk pooling may provide a basis for government intervention. Alternatively, if risks are being pooled adequately without the help of the government, government risk-sharing may be redundant. This study explores the implications of the risk-sharing model, namely, that households which pool risks, either through formal markets or informal personal arrangements, experience correlated changes in their consumption through time. It conducts tests of within-village, across-village, within-district, and across-district risksharing using a new Pakistani panel data set—the Pakistan Food Security Management Survey—collected by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, D. C. Unlike studies for other Less Developed Countries (LDCs), these tests find very little or almost no evidence of risk-sharing among unrelated individuals within- and across-villages in the rural sector of Pakistan.

Explanation of Off-farm Work Participation in Rural Pakistan

The role of off-farrn employment in augmenting household fann income in the developing countries is of special significance, given the land and water resource constraints and the alanning. rate of population growth. This study focuses on the rural household in Pakistan in an effort to understand the economic and social factors that affect off-farm work participation of male household members in the rural areas. The data are derived from the cross-section survey carried out by the International Food Policy Research Institute for the year 1986-87 as a panel study of rural households. The parameters of the model are estimated using the standard maximum likelihood Tobit approach. Most of the results are consistent with the findings in other developing countries. The results confirm that the level of human capital plays an important role in making decisions providing for labour in off-fann work activities. The study also highlights the fact that fann-to-market roads and village electrification are some of the development strategies vital to encourage participation in off-farm work.

Environmental and Qualitative Monitoring of a Transoceanic Intermodal Transport of Melons

To supply the off-season melon market, Europe imports from distant markets in other countries, mainly Brazil. Cold transportation takes at least 15–20 days, thus increasing the risk of quality losses. Moreover, product deliveries, especially in international markets, can result in supply chain inefficiencies that negatively affect carbon footprint and expected freshness. Implementing quality sensors and advanced cold chain management could help to reduce these problems. The objective of this work was to monitor a real transoceanic intermodal transport of melons (Brazil to Spain), through the implementation of multi-distributed environmental sensors (15 ibuttons loggers) to evaluate the remaining shelf-life (RSHL) of melons at destination. The sensors’ location within the cargo reached a maximum variability range of 4 °C. Using digital sensors to track temperature variations, it was verified that in different locations in the container, the melon RSHL at the end of the journey, was nine days and 19 h in colder spots, while in the hottest spot, the RSHL was reduced to five days and 22 h. This fact has substantial implications for improved tracking of temperature to maintain fruit quality for market, potentially reducing waste, and contributing to higher profit margins for international food supply chains.

THEORETICAL AND ANALYTICAL REVIEW OF THE DEFINITION OF "FOOD SECURITY" AND THE ROLE OF THE PORTS OF GREATER ODESSA IN OVERCOMING THE GLOBAL CRISIS

Topicality. With the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the russian federation on the territory of Ukraine, economic activity suffered serious damage, including damage to agriculture. Which in turn leads to a problem in the sphere of ensuring state and international food security.Aim and tasks. The purpose of the article is the theoretical substantiation of the definition of "food security" and the analysis of the activities of the ports of Great Odesa in relation to the regulation of the crisis situation in matters of international food security.Materials and methods. Empirical, theoretical, analytical and synthesis models of scientific research were used in this article. The graphic method of scientific research and the grouping method were also used in the work.Research results. The article analyzes the scientific literature and legal acts of the theoretical apparatus of the term "food security". This term was generalized to a single concept based on current events taking place in Ukraine. An analysis of the operation of the ports of Greater Odessa (Odesa, Chornomorsk, Pivdenny) was also carried out, based on data for 2021 and current indicators obtained from the modern database "Black Sea Grain Initiative Vessel Movements". During the analysis, it was determined that agricultural products such as corn (1.821 million tons and 1.757 million tons, respectively) are mostly exported from the ports of Chornomorsk and Pivdenny. Wheat, in turn, is in second place in the ranking of the most popular exported agricultural crops, but it is the first in the port of "Odesa" - 1.261 million tons. A rating of exporting countries was also compiled: Turkey took first place, followed by Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Egypt, and others.Conclusion. The conducted analysis of the current state of food security, especially the influence of the seaports of Greater Odessa on solving the crisis situation, indicates that, of course, there is a decrease in the export of grain crops to the countries of Asia, Europe and Africa, but the experience gained during the implementation of the "Grain Agreement" can be used in order to improve the transport management of food security of Ukraine.

The Physicochemical Analysis and Anthocyanin Level of Malaysian Purple Sweet Potato Cracker

Purple Sweet Potato (PSP) in Malaysia is an abandoned crop. Even though it has various health benefits and nutritional values, consumers, especially Malaysians, still lack purple sweet potato consumption. It has a high dietary fibre content, a low glycemic index, and contains proteins, minerals, polyphenols, and anthocyanin. The National Health Morbidity Survey (Malaysia) in 2019 reported that 94% of Malaysian adults lack fiber consumption in their dietary patterns. As a result, it may become an alternative crop for individuals who consume less nutrients and fibre as a result of dietary choices and health issues. This one-of-a-kind crop also contains anti-oxidative, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, anti-diabetic, anti-microbial, anti-obesity, and anti-aging qualities. Due to the lack of a commercial food product based on this crop, it has become an unpopular crop among Malaysians. Purple sweet potato makes only a few Malaysian sweets and traditional snacks. Nonetheless, Malaysian customers continue to ignore it. Thus, Purple Sweet Potato Cracker was made, and a proximate analysis was conducted to examine its physicochemical content. It was found that the newly developed PSP crackers were high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals, as well as in calcium (1332.08 mg/kg) and contained anthocyanins of 6.68 mg/L. Besides that, this special cracker is free from food preservatives without coloring agents and additives. The processing of Purple Sweet Potato Cracker carries important features for small-medium entrepreneurs, which will contribute to the Malaysian economy perspectives, as it has a good potential to be marketed in domestic and international commercial food outlets.

Linguistic Glocalization as a Promotional Strategy by Multi-National Fast-Food Chains: A Case Of Pakistan

This research discusses that how international fast food chains use glocal strategies for promoting and localizing their brands in Pakistan. The major source, that these fast food chains use, is advertisements, and their focus is on the language of the target country. The purpose is to investigate the language of advertisements and how they use local language in special events of Pakistan, and thus promote their products through local language in advertisements. Qualitative research approach has been used for the analysis of advertisements and to answer the research questions. The concepts of universalizing and particularizing tendencies by Ronald (1980) and the theory of ‘Cultural Glocality’ by Fernandez (2009) with some modifications, have been used as a theoretical framework. For this purpose, top three international fast food chains such as, McDonald’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut have been selected. All the advertisements fromJanuary 2021 to June 2021 have been collected for this research. Findings reveal that international fast food chains are more popular in Pakistan because of the language they use in their advertisements to attract and convey their message to their customers. After analyzing the data, it is concluded that the main glocal strategies are the use of the local language(s), code switching, use of location, use of cultural and religious events and language features, which they exhibit through their advertisements. By using local language, they promote their products and at the same time localize themselves in Pakistan.

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 shifting foundations of territorial embeddedness in food retailing: recent insights from China

ABSTRACT Economic geographers exploring the globalisation of food retailing have argued that retail TNCs might secure a foothold in host markets by deepening their territorial embeddedness in regional logistics and supply networks, consumer markets and cultures, and property markets. Yet, over the past decade in China, hitherto one of the most prominent foci for food retail TNC entry, the market has rapidly morphed in ways that have profoundly challenged the ability of international food retailers to deepen or even maintain their territorial embeddedness, with divestment an increasing reality. This paper argues that the advantages retail TNCs initially enjoyed (e.g., superiority in store format design and planning; marketing and IT infrastructure; favourable host market regulations; and efficient sourcing/logistics networks) have atrophied in the face of a maturing retail market characterised by strengthening domestic retail competition, less favourable host market regulations, the rise of digital platforms and markedly shifting customer expectations. As such, a reformulation is required that identifies how three imperatives – which we term online integration, offline reconfiguration and strategic reinforcement – crosscut the existing dimensions of territorial embeddedness and set the context for the strategic responses of retail TNCs and their highly variable effectiveness. More broadly, the paper exposes the dynamic, multi-agent and temporal nature of the retail embeddedness process, with the retail TNC and their strategic responses set against a host market context of intersecting stakeholders, institutions and regulations that are themselves also in a constant state of flux.

Impact of Extrinsic and Intrinsic Attributes on Consumer Attitude with Reference to Japanese Frozen Food in Malaysia

Generally, frozen food businesses have experienced a huge demand for their products since the pandemic began as consumers were stocking up on frozen foods to reduce close contact with others. The popularity of international food including Japanese food among Muslims and non-Muslims are growing in Malaysia, developing a Japanese cuisine community. However, strong competition in the food industry especially in the frozen food market may not be easy for Japan-made frozen foods to achieve a competitive position in the Malaysian market. Hence, this study aims to investigate the role of intrinsic factors (brand reputation, price perception, Halal label and product information) and extrinsic factors (convenience, health consciousness, food quality and social influence) on attitude towards Japanese frozen food. The findings show that brand reputation, Halal label, and food quality were positively related to attitude whereas, health consciousness was negatively associated with attitude. The outcome of this research is expected to provide insights to Japanese frozen food manufacturers on the appropriate marketing strategies to be adopted to penetrate into the Malaysian frozen food market, which is expanding rapidly at present.