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Food security is a highly complex issue that requires a systems view integrating multiple dimensions and aspects of the food system. Food availability, quality, access, utilization, and the stability of each of these components depend on agricultural production, employment, poverty, economic growth, climate, human health, biodiversity loss, water, pollution, consumption, and societal norms. The team colours-of-food-security.com attempted to assess all these aspects of food security using satellite data. Unfortunately, this site is no longer available, but I still have saved maps developed by this team.
Each pixel on this world map highlights the areas covered by croplands (green color) and pastures (orange color) worldwide. Humans have converted ~12% of the Earth’s ice-free land surface area to grow crops, fuel, and fiber, and ~22% for grazing cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens, and other forms of livestock.
Agriculture represents the largest human land footprint on the planet. Rising demand for agricultural products is currently straining the Earth’s life-supporting systems.
Employment in agriculture
The map below features the number of humans around the world who are employed in agriculture. Agriculture employs approximately 1 billion people worldwide and is a critical source of income for many of the world’s poor. While some parts of the world have decoupled agricultural production from labor through the use of mechanization and technology, others have not yet made this transition.
Countries with high per capita GDP and food security typically have low proportions of their population in agriculture, while poorer countries have higher proportions of employment in agriculture and lower food security.
World Hunger
Each pixel on the next map shows the number of undernourished people on the planet. One in ten people on the planet today do not have enough calories to support a basic, energetically undemanding lifestyle. One in four do not get enough of the right nutrients from their food, such as iron and vitamin A. Lack of proper nutrition has drastic impacts on child mortality, health, and intellect.
While the proportion of undernourished people worldwide has declined over the past few decades, the proportion of people who consume in excess has risen dramatically, and in absolute numbers, is now almost double that of the undernourished.
Water Consumption
Each pixel on the map below shows the quantity of groundwater extracted in different watersheds across the world. Agricultural production accounts for approximately 92% of the human water footprint. As a consequence, many aquifers around the world are rapidly being depleted, some large lakes and inland seas have dried out, and many rivers no longer reach the oceans. This means that agriculture is a major factor leading to water insecurity for human populations and other species on our planet.
Pollution
The following map highlights the amount of excess phosphorus applied to croplands across the world. Fertilizers from agriculture, including synthetic, animal-based (e.g., manure), and plant-based (e.g., legumes), have enabled global agricultural productivity to soar over the past 50 years. However, the use of these fertilizers is often excessive. Phosphorus is a key ingredient in many fertilizers, and its over-application has negatively impacted our freshwater systems through widespread eutrophication. Excess nitrogen, often applied alongside phosphorus, has also come at a great cost to human health through the pollution of drinking water.
Biodiversity Loss
This map depicts the number of threatened mammal and bird species whose ranges overlap with pasture or cropland ecosystems. Agriculture is responsible for clearing approximately 30% of forests worldwide, resulting in about a 35% loss of local species richness. The dominance of agricultural land use makes it especially difficult for species with large distributions to coexist with humans on the planet. Loss of biodiversity, in turn, causes a decline in nature’s contributions to people, such as pollination and pest control services, leading to reduced agricultural productivity.
Climate change
Each pixel on the map below highlights greenhouse gas emissions from global croplands, which are one of the leading causes of climate change. Agriculture is currently responsible for approximately 22% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with around 9% coming from deforestation and about 13% from related land management practices. Methane emissions from livestock and rice paddies, as well as nitrous oxide emissions from fertilizer application, are some of the main contributors to agricultural emissions. In a vicious feedback cycle, these greenhouse gas emissions are contributing to an increase in extreme weather disasters, leading to lower yields and more crop losses.
Waste The world map below shows the percentage of food that is wasted in each country. For mapping purposes, the team only highlighted areas with dense human populations (>1000 people per pixel). Currently, approximately 25% of the world’s food produced globally is never consumed. Food waste occurs in the field, after harvest, along supply chains, and among retailers and consumers.
Waste due to consumers is much higher in European and North American countries, while waste in the field occurs predominantly in African, South Asian, and Southeast Asian countries. Reducing total food waste is a major leverage point toward a sustainable food system.
Diet Shifts
This map features the number of calories produced that are currently being used to feed livestock (in total, this is approximately 36% of all calories produced by crops globally). The world is currently facing a series of interconnected problems related to the food system, including malnutrition, environmental impacts, and non-communicable and communicable diseases. One proposed solution to these problems is to shift dietary trends away from grain-fed animal products. This shift would free up approximately 70% more calories, meet human energy requirements, and reduce the impact of agriculture on the environment and human health.
Right to Food
This map highlights the number of humans worldwide who have an explicit constitutional right to food. Included in the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the right to food has been explicitly recognized in the constitutions of 30 countries. Currently, approximately 815 million people in the world do not have sufficient caloric intake to sustain their daily energy needs. One solution to this problem, and to others related to our unsustainable food system, is to entrench the right to food in the constitutions of nations. However, the actual impact of the constitutional right to food on food security is not yet known.
In summary
The final map, taking into account all these aspects of food security, is as follows.
Food security is a pressing global issue, with millions of people around the world facing food insecurity. Some of the most insecure places on our planet include regions affected by conflict, such as Yemen, South Sudan, and Syria, where ongoing violence disrupts food production and distribution. Additionally, areas prone to natural disasters, such as Haiti, are also particularly vulnerable to food insecurity. Economic challenges, political instability, and environmental factors can all contribute to food insecurity in these regions. Addressing these complex issues requires coordinated efforts to improve access to food, address underlying causes, and build resilience in affected communities.
If you’re interested in agriculture, we recommend checking out the following books.
