Food resources (KQ1) Flashcards
How do we measure global food consumption patterns?
- food consumption per capita
- daily calorie intake
- starchy staple as a % of all calories
What is food consumption per capita and what is recorded for it?
- refers to the average amount of food a person consumes a year
- measured in kilogrammes (kg/capita/yr)
- recorded for individual food groups (cereal, meat, vegetables etc)
What is total daily calorie intake?
- represents the total number of calories obtained from food consumption per person each day
What are staple foods?
- food that forms the main part of the diet
Why are staple foods important?
- they supply a major proportion of a person’s energy and nutrient needs
Why do food consumption patterns vary between developed and developing countries (political)?
- stability of food supply
- food safety
Why do food consumption patterns vary between developed and developing countries (economic)?
- disposable income
- pricing
What is disposable income?
- the amount of income left to an individual after taxes have been paid
how does economic growth lead to a larger amount and variety of food consumed?
- economic growth –> higher disposable income –> larger amount and variety of food consumed
What happens when there is more disposable income?
- they will consume a larger amount and variety of food (more meat & less cereals)
Why does consumption of meat increase when there is more disposable income?
- meat consumption is associated with wealth and status
What is an example of economic growth leading to consumption of a larger amount and variety of foods?
- 1959 - 1991: Taiwan (LDC) had a high economic growth
- rice consumption decreased by 1/2
- meat consumption increased by 4 times
- fish consumption doubled
When disposable income increases in DCs, how do diets improve?
- quality (not quantity) improve
- people in DCs are able to afford healthier food
-e.g. organic food and olive oil
Who is more affected by rising food prices and why?
- LDCs
- more affected as they have less disposable income
What is an example food prices rising and the impacts of it on DCs and LDCs?
- 2006 - 2008: food prices rose significantly worldwide
- LDCs could not afford staple food
- caused decreased consumption
- In DCs, the effects were not as significant
- as people could still afford staple foods
Why do food consumption patterns vary between developed and developing countries (socio-cultural)?
- food preferences
- population growth
How has fast food consumption changed in LDCs (India case study)?
- in 1991, fast food chains like Mcdonald’s and Pizza Hut were allowed to set up in India
- many people chose fast food over local food
- in 2009, about US$400 million was spent on fast food
- generally, fast food consumption has increased
How has fast food consumption changed in DCs
- although fast food is popular, people avoid them as they are unhealthy
- people are concerned over how it is prepared and processed
- generally fast food consumption has decreased
What kind of food is preferred by people in DCs?
- organic food
What is organic food?
- food grown without the use of artificial inputs
Why do more people choose organic food in DCs?
- due to the perceived health benefits
- they want to avoid potentially harmful pesticides used in normal farming methods
What are some examples of demand for organic food?
- in 2011, a survey in the USA revealed that 58% of the population prefer organic food
- in 2009, a report stated that the demand for organic food has grown by about 20% every year since 1997
How does population growth impact food consumption patterns?
- as population increases, demand for food worldwide increases
How is the world population set to change?
- increase from 7 billion to 10 billion (2050)
Why is the demand for food higher in LDCs than in DCs?
- population growth rates are higher in LDCs (they need more food for more people basically)
How do LDCs compare with DCs in terms of food stability?
- less able to ensure food stability
Why are LDCs less able to ensure food stability?
- lack of access to technology or finances to implement technology on a large scale
- unable to import food when prices become too expensive
How do DCs compare to LDCs in terms of food stability?
- better than LDCs generally
- however, DCs like Singapore import 90% of their food supply
Who is responsible for food safety?
- government
What are some examples of food safety issues?
- 2011 tohoku earthquake (Japan): seafood imports from japan restricted in singapore due to fears of nuclear contamination from damaged nuclear plants
- mad cow disease (Europe): took place in europe in 1990s, USA and canada in 2005 –> caused decreased consumption of beef
What are the different categories of impacts of insufficient food consumption?
- health
- economic
- social
- political
What are the health impacts of insufficient food consumption?
- malnutrition
- starvation
What is malnutrition defined as?
- a condition in which the body does not get a sufficient or balanced amount of nutrients needed to maintain healthy tissue and organ function
What does malnutrition result in?
- death
- long-term development problems
Who is affected by malnutrition?
- DCs
- LDCs
What are some statistics that demonstrate the impacts of starvation in LDCs?
- 2009: malnutrition was the underlying cause of death in 52.5% of children under 5
- each year 5 million children under 5 die in LDCs due to malnutrition
- lack of vitamin A causes blindness and visual impairment
- 250000-500000 children become blind in LDCs every year due to lack of vitamin A
What impact does lack of vitamin A have on children deficient in it?
- unable to attend school due to blindness
- unable to earn enough in the future
How is malnutrition caused in DCs?
- elderly people die due to malnutrition due to their difficulty in digesting or chewing food
- people with eating disorders (anorexia/bulimia) may also develop it
What are some statistics that demonstrate the impacts of malnutrition in DCs
- UK: in 2006 3 million people had osteoporosis due to the lack of vitamin D and calcium
- US$3.7 million spent on patients with hip fractures
What is starvation?
- an extreme form of malnutrition
What does starvation result in (health)?
- body becomes extremely thin
- permanent organ damage
- eventually death (if not addressed)
Why is starvation more common in LDCs?
- more people live in poverty
- lack of resources to recover from natural disasters
- rebellions and wars
What are some statistics demonstrating the health impacts of starvation?
- 2010: 98% of people facing starvation are from LDCs (Asia-Pacific, Sub-Saharan Africa)
- 2012: 5 million in Mali were threatened with starvation due to poor harvest and civil rebellion
What are the economic impacts of insufficient food consumption?
- lower productivity
- diversion of financial resources to healthcare
- long-term debt due to food and financial aid
What does productivity refer to?
- the rate at which goods and services are produced
How does insufficient food consumption lead to lower productivity which eventually leads to a negative economic impact?
- insufficient food consumption –> fall sick more often –> lower productivity –> lower income
- children suffering from inadequate food consumption fall sick more often leading them to miss more days of school which leads to a loss of opportunities (education or work)
What is a statistic that displays the impact of inadequate food consumption on children’s education (lower productivity category)?
- 1/4 of the world’s children have their development impaired by malnutrition
- quality schooling cancelled out by malnutrition
What is an example of insufficient food consumption’s impact on productivity?
- 2011 report: in countries like India, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia
- long term low nutrition intake = low productivity
- farmers less innovative, less experimental, unable to implement improvements in farming
How does insufficient food consumption lead to diversion of financial resources to healthcare?
- insufficient food consumption –> fall sick more –> demand for healthcare increases –> healthcare spedning increases –> less resources for education, housing and transport –> economic growth and development decreases
What kind of problems does long-term financial aid lead to in receiving countries?
- long-term debt problems
What is an example of debt due to financial aid to LDCs?
- USA: contributes 1/2 of all global aid
- but food supplied is up to 34% more expensive than if bought locally
- LDCs lost US$5 to 7 billion
- increased national debt
What is the political impact of insufficient food consumption?
- social unrest
What is social unrest?
- a political situation in which people protest or behave violently to convey their unhappiness about a political system
What is an example of how insufficient food consumption causes social unrest?
- Mozambique: 2010 food prices increased
- caused by a drought in Russia that caused an increase in the price of wheat sold in Mozambique
- violent protests ensued with 10 dead and 400 injured
What is the social impact of insufficient food consumption?
- scavenging
What is scavenging?
- searching through things others dispose of
Why to people scavenge?
- to find whatever food they can to eat to survive
Why is scavenging bad (dangerous, shunned etc)?
- carries health risks as food may contain bacteria or chemicals
- places people in dangerous or illegal situation (e.g. trespassing on private property)
- perceived as a public nuisance
- verbally or physically harassed
What is an example of scavenging?
- Philippines: slum residents of a large landfill known as smokey mountain sift through rubbish for meals
What are the impacts of excess food consumption?
- health (obesity)
- economic (decreased productivity, diversion of financial resources to healthcare) (similar to impacts of insufficent consumption)
- social (food wastage & dieting)
