Commentary: Zero hunger remains challenging

BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- With the arrival of the World Food Day 2024, the global hunger crisis continues to cast a dark shadow over progress, with alarming statistics showing that hunger levels have remained distressingly high for the third year in a row.

As around 733 million people -- one in eleven -- are struggling with hunger, Qu Dongyu, director general of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, has issued a timely call for urgent global action, reminding the world that the "right to food" is not just a necessity, but a fundamental human right the world can no longer ignore.

The interconnectedness and fragility of the global food system have become increasingly evident. The escalation of the Ukraine crisis has severely disrupted global food production and transportation. This has resulted in supply shortages and soaring prices, prompting some countries to implement export bans, worsening the plight of countries heavily reliant on food imports.

In addition, ongoing conflicts in Sudan and the Gaza Strip threaten to exacerbate hunger crises, with many families in Gaza facing severe food insecurity and millions in Haiti struggling to obtain enough food.

Climate change is further complicating food security, as extreme weather events lead to crop failures and increased supply gaps. The FAO's latest Global Report on Food Crises indicates that extreme weather has left 72 million people in 18 countries facing severe food insecurity.

Predictions suggest that climate issues could raise hunger and malnutrition rates by nearly 20 percent by 2050. Also, droughts are intensifying tensions between humans and nature, prompting some southern African countries to controversially cull protected animals encroaching on human habitats.

Since the 21st century, the world has experienced three distinct food crises, with low-income countries enduring the most significant hardships. While developed countries may respond to rising food prices by reducing consumption, crises in poorer countries often result in immediate hunger and conflict. A United Nations (UN) report warns that by 2030, approximately 582 million people will face long-term food shortages, half of them in Africa, making the goal of "zero hunger" increasingly difficult to achieve.

Despite the potential for adequate food production, the frequency of food crises stems largely from distribution issues. In 2022, global grain production surpassed 2.7 billion tons, sufficient to meet the basic needs of an estimated eight billion people.

The disparity arises from concentrated production and trade in a few developed countries and their multinational corporations, while consumption spreads across numerous developing countries, creating an inequitable system marked by overproduction alongside widespread hunger and social unrest. The World Bank's analysis pointed to the development of biofuels from "surplus" grain by countries like the United States and Europe as a primary cause of that crisis.

The global food crisis is fundamentally a crisis for developing countries, rooted in complex institutional causes. Historically, developed countries have leveraged food aid and free trade to gain market shares, undermining developing countries' agricultural autonomy. As these countries' traditional agriculture crumbles under subsidized competition, their ability to respond to crises is significantly weakened.

Food security is both a developmental and fairness issue. The international community must enhance poverty reduction efforts and strengthen food production capabilities while building a more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agricultural system. This will enable more people to achieve better production, nutrition, and enjoy a better environment and quality of life.

The task of achieving global food security is immense. Preventing hunger necessitates enhanced international cooperation and the establishment of a fairer global food production and distribution system.