The Global Food Insecurity Crisis: Causes, Prevalence, and Implications

blackactivistwriter
Dec 23
6 min read

Everyone should have the right to access food. It nourishes both our bodies and minds. Food holds significant cultural meaning. During important holidays, such as Thanksgiving, food serves as the main centerpiece. Families pass down meaningful recipes. In all, food binds society together and fosters a sense of community and joy.

A smorgasbord of colorful vegetables and salad toppings. The human right to access nutritious food is a universally recognized human right. — A smorgasbord of colorful vegetables.

Unfortunately, not everyone in the world has reliable access to food. Food insecurity is a global crisis affecting every country. People often think of food insecurity as a third-world issue, but it persists in wealthy nations, such as the United States. In this post, I explain food insecurity and its key components, analyze its global prevalence, and discuss key implications.

What is food insecurity?

Two people holding a bowl of freshly ripe grape tomatoes. — Food security is achieved when people have full access to safe, nutritious food.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), food insecurity is a social issue that occurs when individuals or households don't have reliable access to safe, nutritious food necessary to sustain life and support healthy development. Food insecurity is defined by four key components: availability, access, utilization, and stability.

Availability refers to whether sufficient food is produced and supplied to meet the global population's needs. Access to food measures the extent to which individuals or households have the financial or material means—such as adequate income—to obtain food. Utilization refers to nutritional quality, including the body's ability to consume and absorb food.

Finally, stability refers to individuals' ability to remain food secure at all times, even when social, economic, political, or environmental disruptions occur. A case in point of such instability was the U.S. government shutdown, which curtailed food assistance programs

and food banks.

Food insecurity exists on a spectrum ranging from acute to chronic and severe, contingent upon duration and intensity. A common thread across all levels is its unpredictability and the prolonged lack of access to food, which poses serious risks to individuals' health and well-being.

Key Drivers of Food Insecurity

White and gold ceramic plate with the word "hunger" spelled out in upper case letters. — Hunger is the physical sensation of not consuming a sufficient amount of food necessary to sustain dietary energy.

Food insecurity can be understood through an ecological lens, as myriad factors impede individuals' ability to access food. Environmentally, climate change and extreme natural disasters—such as monsoons and droughts—have decimated crops and destroyed farmland worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic further disrupted food supply chains, resulting in food shortages and high food prices. Geopolitical events, like the war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza, have also placed a heavy strain on vital crops like wheat.

Furthermore, the recent U.S. government shutdown disrupted nonprofit organizations and food assistance programs, particularly the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Food banks continue to grapple with the aftermath and are working tirelessly to recover from the prolonged disruption from the shutdown.

Where Food Insecurity is Most Pronounced

Desk globe on table — Food insecurity is a global crisis affecting every country.

According to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2025 report published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), approximately 8.2% of the global population experienced hunger in 2024. Between 2022 and 2023, world hunger rates ranged between 8.5% and 8.7%, indicating a modest decline. Although this suggests some relative progress in alleviating world hunger, the pace of improvement remains painfully slow. In an ideal world, hunger should not exist at all. Eliminating hunger may seem elusive, but it is a vital goal to work toward because it would promote global stability and peace.

One of the most staggering findings from the SOFI 2025 report is that an estimated 2.3 billion people experienced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2024. Despite modest declines in prevalence rates, the absolute number of people experiencing food insecurity continues to be disturbingly high.

Overall, the global prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity currently stands at 28%. Progress across regions, however, is uneven. Africa is currently experiencing the highest burden, with nearly 59% (58.9%) of the population affected. In the United States, 10.3% of the population experienced moderate or severe food insecurity between 2022 and 2024. This translates to an estimated 35.3 million people impacted, including 3.3 million individuals who were severely food insecure.

Regions of focus: Prevalence of food insecurity

A grocery store displaying empty shelves. — A myriad of factors, such as conflict and food supply constraints, have caused food shortages and rising food prices.

My two main regions of focus were Southeast Asia and Eastern Africa, with case studies on Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Sudan. I chose these countries due to the wealth of information available on the food crisis, which can shed light on how the ongoing global food insecurity crisis impacts their respective regions. During my research, I identified several common patterns.

A place inundated with floodwater. — Natural disasters around the world, such as extreme flooding, have decimated important crops and livestock.

According to the Global Report on Food Crisis 2025 report published by the Food Security Information Network, Myanmar continues to experience conflict across the country, displacing 3.2 million people. Moreover, 14.4 million people experienced acute food insecurity between September and October 2024. Subsequently, the conflict has destroyed public infrastructure, particularly healthcare facilities, and impeded movement and the delivery of humanitarian assistance. Climate change also contributed to the crisis, with extreme flooding and landslides between August and September 2024 decimating crops and farmland.

A group of men on boats in the water somewhere in Bangladesh.

In Bangladesh, 23.6 million people have been affected by high levels of acute food insecurity between October and December 2024. Similar to Myanmar, the main causes behind the food crisis are driven by displacement from neighboring Myanmar, natural disasters, and economic challenges. Cyclones, monsoons, and landslides have damaged crops and farmland, which have skyrocketed food prices and hindered individuals' ability to access sufficient food.

A group of huts in a desert somewhere in Sudan. — A desert somewhere in Sudan.

Similar to Southern Asia, East Africa is besieged with high levels of acute food insecurity, conflict, and climate-related disasters. This has produced rippling effects across the nation with exorbitant food prices, decimated crops and farmland, and curtailed access to vital services, such as healthcare and humanitarian aid, which adversely impact individuals' quality of life and well-being.

Key implications

One key takeaway is not to take data at face value. The SOFI 2025 report highlighted a marginal reduction in the global hunger rate to 8.2%, an improvement over the 8.5%-8.7% range in 2022-2023. However, a closer look reveals significant regional and intra-country differences. Even at 8.2%, a substantial portion of the world's population still experienced hunger, highlighting the need to interpret data with nuance.

Another takeaway is that food insecurity impacts different populations in unique ways. Disaggregated data helps identify key trends and tailor policies and programs to address hunger effectively. According to FAO and the SOFI 2025 report, women experienced higher rates of moderate or severe food insecurity than men across every region globally, with 26.4% of women affected compared to 24.5% of men between 2022 and 2024. Rural populations also face higher risks than urban populations: in 2024, 32% of people living in rural areas experienced moderate or severe food insecurity compared to 23% of people living in urban areas. These sharp disparities underscore the unique challenges faced by specific subpopulations in accessing food.

Conclusion

The realization of the human right to have unmitigated access to healthy, nutritious food cannot be overstated.

A woman holding up a white sign, "No farmers, no food", during a protest. — Access to food is a universally recognized human right.

As I stated in the opening paragraph, food nourishes both our bodies and minds. Volatile food prices and high inflation have reduced the overall quality of life and put a huge strain on household budgets. Rising food prices have forced many people to compromise their health and well-being. The astronomical price of nutrient-dense foods, such as fruits and vegetables, has pushed many individuals to rely more heavily on processed foods. While these foods are inexpensive and conveniently available, they often come at the expense of one's health and are associated with a myriad of adverse health outcomes. Learning about food insecurity has deepened my understanding of how inflation, rising food prices, and environmental factors significantly curtail individual autonomy.

People’s circumstances shape their individual decisions. Eating processed foods or junk food does not inherently reflect a lack of willpower or personal choice. In some parts of inner-city Wilmington, Delaware, for example, neighborhoods are considered food deserts, meaning residents have limited to no access to grocery stores, convenience stores, and fast-food restaurants, which offer limited healthy food options. In such environments, unhealthy food choices are driven by structural barriers rather than individual autonomy.