The 1996 World Food Summit defined food security as existing when all people have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food for an active and healthy life. This definition shifted focus from mere supply availability to include human rights and individual choice.
In 2023, nearly 28 percent of the global population faced moderate or severe food insecurity. This figure represents approximately 2.33 billion people who lacked regular access to adequate food.
Women make up 60 percent of the world's chronically hungry population because a 2021 study found that 29.9 percent of women aged between 15 and 49 years suffered from anemia globally. The gender gap in food insecurity widened significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, growing from 1.7 percentage points in 2019 to 4.3 percentage points in 2021.
The Holodomor famine in the Soviet Union resulted in seven to ten million deaths due to communist economic policy rather than natural scarcity alone. Government actions or inactions determine whether famines occur and how severe they become according to Amartya Sen.
Availability remains the first pillar referring to supply through production distribution and exchange while Access constitutes the second pillar focusing on affordability allocation and individual preferences. Utilization forms the third pillar concerning metabolism safety and physiological requirements and Stability represents the fourth dimension ensuring consistent access over time despite disruptions.
Climate change significantly impacted food security in 2023 affecting over 77 million people across eighteen countries. Extreme weather events disrupted agriculture damaged crops decreased availability underlining need for urgent global action.