Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Increased consumption of foods that are energy dense, high in fat and refined carbo-
hydrates, and low in fiber is altering the traditional diet in many countries. While the
sedentary urban lifestyle requires much less energy-dense foods, the global increase
in calorie availability has led to excess food consumption, the adverse health effects
of which have only recently become apparent in developed countries. The obesity
problem is expected to continue, and its associated health costs could be overwhelm-
ing for developing countries. However, public nutritional education efforts, particu-
larly in schools, can put countries on a path to slow the obesity epidemic.
The worldwide interest in crop biomass for biofuels will affect countries differ-
ently. Those countries with abundant agricultural resources and capital will cer-
tainly benefit. For example, many countries in Latin America will benefit from the
higher demand for biofuels
and higher agricultural prices; these factors could work
to reduce food insecurity and poverty in some of these countries, which are among
the poorest in the world. There is also concern over the deepening of food insecurity
because of higher food prices and transportation costs in areas with low incomes
with poor agricultural resources. It is not clear in what way or for how long this new
industry will influence the future food market, but given the growing interest level,
the issue surely requires further monitoring and analysis.
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Despite slowing considerably through time, global population growth remains
around 1% per year; this means that nearly 57 million people are added to
the total population each year.
During the last century, growth in global food production surpassed popula-
tion growth, leading to gains in per capita consumption.
Daily per capita calorie availability, at the global level, increased 17% between
1970 and 2005.
While cereals and sugar continue to account for the largest share of the global
diet, there have been some marked shifts over time; the meat share of the
diet rose 80% from 1970 to 2005, while the vegetable oil share rose 67%
during the same time period.
The global increase in calorie availability has led to excess food consumption
in many developed countries, which has had adverse health consequences.
Urbanization and higher incomes resulted in an increase in daily per capita
calorie intake in developing countries between 1970 and 2005 that was
three times the rate of developed countries.
Between 1970 and 2005, the cereals' share of the developing country diet fell;
at the same time, consumption of vegetable oils in these countries doubled,
while that of meat, milk, and eggs jumped almost 2.6-fold.
Domestic production accounts for the bulk of food consumption, meaning per-
formance of production is key to improving food consumption; growth in
production stems from expansion of arable land, increase in cropping inten-
sity, and growth in yields.
