Sustainable Nutrition in a Changing World

Chapter 1

1. The Right to Food and Food Security

It is a known fact that foods that provide the energy and nutrients required by all humans to live and thrive are not only the building blocks of healthy diets but also, by extension, the building blocks of thriving communities and populations.

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the human right to an adequate standard of living. This includes the right to adequate food and for all human beings to be free from hunger.

In the 1950s, the concept of food security referred to concerns about the fair distribution of surplus food, however, since then this concept has been broadened to describe adequate access for all people to food at all times in order to live active and healthy lives. Today the term food security implies the goal of freedom from hunger and malnutrition for all human beings.

In order to ensure an adequate nutritional status for the world’s population in the long term, it is necessary to consider the root causes of food insecurity alongside food availability and the role of environmental conditions.

Read more about how to ensure every human is free from hunger and malnutrition here.

Biesalski HK, Drewnowski A, Dwyer JT, Strain JJ, Weber P, Eggersdorfer M. Sustainable Nutrition in a Changing World. Springer. 2017:3-24.

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