A new study shows that climate change will increase the challenge of meeting nutrition and food needs of a growing population, especially in Africa south of the Sahara, but policy actions initiated now could help avert this additional burden.
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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC: A new study by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS), and RTI International (RTI) projects that global chronic and hidden hunger will increase the overall years of life lost due to premature mortality and years lived with disability, also known as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), globally by over 30 million by 2050 relative to 2010. Expected impacts of climate change on the availability and access to nutritious food will exacerbate this change in DALYs by almost 10 percent.
Researchers published the findings in an article in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, further indicating that policymakers could counteract at least the impacts of climate change with increased investments in food systems now.
“Investment in agricultural R&D, irrigation systems, market access, and infrastructure are essential to counteract the effects of factors that increase DALYs in coming decades,” said Robert Beach, Senior Economist and Fellow at RTI. “To meet the needs and nutrition requirements for society, it is important for policymakers to invest more broadly in food systems, rather than focusing on the production of calories. Strengthening food systems now, along with health, education and employment opportunities can reduce the effects of climate change and population growth on global hunger.”
According to pre-pandemic estimates, 10 percent of the world’s population is experiencing hunger or facing severe food insecurity. As climate change and population growth continue to disrupt food systems, researchers found that reaching the UN Sustainable Development Goal of “Zero Hunger” by 2030 is becoming an enormous challenge without extraordinary policy action.
“Improvements in food systems can significantly decrease hunger, but our projections show that population growth will outpace those improvements at current investment levels, especially in Africa south of the Sahara,” Timothy Sulser, Senior Scientist at IFPRI. “Climate change exacerbates the pressures on food systems to deliver healthy diets to everyone but investing in food systems can reduce the years lost that we project, particularly in South and East Asia.”
The scenarios examined in the study show that avoiding an increase in DALYs due to climate change requires a comprehensive investment strategy from policy and decisionmakers globally. An increased investment of $25.5 billion annually, would more than offset the negative impacts of climate change on DALYs according to the study.
Using DALYs as a metric is appealing due to its universally comparable nature across a broad range of potential health issues. Chronic hunger impacts are associated with protein-energy undernutrition while hidden hunger refers to micronutrient deficiencies.
The study used a model of the global food system developed by IFPRI and published relationships between regional food availability and DALYs to project the total number of DALYs caused by chronic and hidden hunger and exacerbated by climate change.
“It was exciting to work with this interdisciplinary team to get this innovative approach to analyzing the impacts climate change can have on our health and our lives” said Naomi Fukagawa, director of the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center at the USDA. “Pulling together perspectives from economists and health/nutrition experts is important for understanding and addressing the complex issues facing the future of food systems.”
Media Contacts:
IFPRI
Drew Sample
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d.sample@cgiar.org
RTI International
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USDA
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About RTI International
RTI International is an independent, nonprofit research institute dedicated to improving the human condition. Clients rely on us to answer questions that demand an objective and multidisciplinary approach — one that integrates expertise across the social and laboratory sciences, engineering and international development. We believe in the promise of science, and we are inspired every day to deliver on that promise for the good of people, communities and businesses around the world. For more information, visit www.rti.org.
About IFPRI
The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. IFPRI was established in 1975 to identify and analyze alternative national and international strategies and policies for meeting the food needs of the developing world, with particular emphasis on low-income countries and on the poorer groups in those countries. It is a research center of CGIAR, a worldwide partnership engaged in agricultural research for development. Visit www.ifpri.org Follow: @IFPRI.
About the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service
The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact. Visit: www.ars.usda.gov Follow: @USDA_ARS
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