Winning the hunger games

Oct 16 is celebrated every year around the world as the World Food Day to mark the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945.

While events are organised in over 150 countries across the world, making it one of the most celebrated days on the UN calendar, I don't think most of the general public, especially here in Asia, know about the importance of this day in promoting worldwide awareness and actions to ensure food security and eradicate hunger in our lifetime.

In India, the country of 1.3 billion people, farmers still burn crop stubble after a harvest, saying the practice is still much cheaper, easier, and less time-consuming than using proper machines to dispose of crop residues.

Like their peers in many parts of the world, Indian farmers have continued to do so even though they are aware burning crops reduces soil fertility and crop yields over time.

With a projected population of 1.5 billion, feeding the people has become increasingly hard for India. Crop yields need to be higher per unit of land and irrigation water.

Meanwhile, Asian farmers, most of whom are smallholders, have to find ways to increase their crop yields. Rice, the staple food for more than half of the world's population, needs special attention because over 90% of the supply is from Asia by predominantly smallholder farmers. For them, rice is not just food; it is also their main source of livelihood.

Smallholders are particularly vulnerable to many threats, including adverse climate impacts, pests and crop diseases and poor infrastructure. They also have limited access to modern agricultural technology and to finance and markets.

Food security is a real challenge for Asia. The FAO earlier this year warned that food safety improvements and mitigation of climate change effects are critical to future food security and rural livelihoods of the region.

While the Asia-Pacific region has made remarkable progress in recent years, the fight against hunger has slowed and in some parts of the region regressed, said the FAO statement. With nearly half a billion people still hungry and undernourished, this is a major concern in its own right, but other factors are aggravating a lack of regional progress toward the goal of zero hunger by 2030.

Every part of society has a role to play in ensuring food security. For farmers themselves, growing pressure on the demand for land to grow crops for biofuel production will simultaneously increase the demand for agro-biodiversity and affect the way farming will be done in the future.

Farmers should therefore diversify their crops to keep soil fertile, control pests and diseases, improve pollination and decrease the impacts of climate change by cutting carbon dioxide emissions.

With the world population expected to reach 9 billion in 2050, farmers should find more productive ways to grow food and manage natural resources sustainably. They can also increase profits by reducing waste and use seeds that are more resistant to drought and diseases and more suited to warmer weather.

By providing the young with the right tools and knowledge, owners of farms and agribusinesses can educate a new generation of farmers, increase their workforce and produce more food.

Governments must also promote synergies between social protection, sustainable agriculture, nutrition, health and educational policies. These sectors all have the same goal: to pull people out of poverty and hunger so they can contribute to development and growth.

Adopting an integrated and cross-policy approach would help countries curb the cost of malnutrition. According to the FAO, the triple burden of malnutrition -- the coexistence of food insecurity, undernutrition, and overweight and obesity -- costs US$3.5 trillion per year to the global economy.

A hungry population is incapable of reaching its full potential, weighs on public health services and is less productive. At the same time, rising overweight and obesity levels are contributing to a public health crisis.

The private sector, meanwhile, should commit to reducing food waste as one-third of all food produced globally is currently wasted or lost. This can be done by improving manufacturing processes.

As a consumer, I'm sure I'm among the good examples. If there are leftovers, freeze them for later or use them as an ingredient in another meal. Buy only what you need and donate food that would otherwise be wasted. For those on diet, healthy food can be prepared quickly and easily by using only a few ingredients.

Let's waste less, eat better and adopt a sustainable lifestyle to make a world free of hunger. The choices we make today are vital for a secure future of food.