WHAT IS HUNGER?

Welthungerhilfe distinguishes between acute, chronic and hidden hunger.

• Acute hunger occurs over a definable period of time and is often associated with crises such as droughts, wars and disasters.

• Chronic hunger, on the other hand, is when hunger and/or malnutrition become a permanent condition. This usually occurs in the context of poverty (no healthy food, no clean water and no adequate health care).

• If important nutrients (e.g. iron, iodine, zinc, vitamin A) are missing due to lack of food, this is called hidden hunger. In the long term, nutrient deficiencies lead to disease, and can also be detrimental to regional development as the performance and health of the population declines.

The World Hunger Index (GHI) examines hunger trends at the global, regional and national levels. Published annually in October since 2006, the report shows progress or setbacks in hunger reduction. The report is jointly published by Welthungerhilfe and Concern Wordwide. The full report can be found at Welthungerhilfe.

The GHI 2023 is showing a dramatic development. Progress against hunger has been in the shadow of contemporary crisis being prevalent in everyday life, leading to rising hunger in some parts of the world. The 2023 GHI score for the world is 18.3, considered moderate with little progress having been achieved since the implementation of the SDGs in 2015. In 14 countries no significant improvement in fighting hunger has been recorded leaving them with moderate, serious or alarming levels of hunger. In another 18 countries the situation has even worsened in comparison to the previous GHI. In 42 countries, the situation remains serious or alarming, meaning that the right to adequate food is violated for almost three-quarters of a billion people every day.

Based on recent development analysis, the GHI 2023 estimates that 58 countries are unlikely to reach low hunger levels in alignment with the 2030 Agenda, within the following seven years.

Despite conditions of hunger remaining on alarming and serious levels, there are some positive developments to note. For instance, Bangladesh and Nepal have successfully achieved reductions of five point or more between their 2015 and 2023 GHI scores (Welthungerhilfe).

The causes of hunger and food insecurity are many and often do not lie in the scarcity of food. According to Welthungerhilfe, wars and conflicts, weather extremes and disasters, and poverty and inequality are among the most common causes. In addition, there are distorted world trade, poor governance and waste of resources. These include unfair trade agreements, corruption, population growth, lack of property rights and water scarcity (European Commission).

Figure 1: World Hunger Index 2023 by severity. Bonn and Dublin: Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide (Welthungerhilfe).

Climate change as a particular challenge

Food Security in Germany

Trockens Maisfeld © iStock | Taglass

In addition, increasing periods of heat and drought in Germany, as well as heavy rain or storms, pose new challenges for agriculture. In past drought summers, for example, crop losses led to an increasing need for imported grain and drove up feed costs enormously. According to the German Farmers’ Association, total losses in agriculture in the drought year 2018 amounted to €2.5 million (Federal Environment Agency 2021). This requires adjustments – especially in water management. Appropriate tillage and cultivation methods, adapted varieties and crops, effective irrigation and sustainable groundwater management can safeguard agricultural yields. In spring 2023, the National Water Strategy was therefore adopted, which takes into account measures for the sustainable management of water resources from all relevant sectors – agriculture and nature conservation, administration and transport, urban development and industry (BMUV 2023).

For further information on the above-mentioned topics, please visit our topic pages:

Agriculture as Critical Infrastructure

In Germany, it is a fundamental obligation of the state to provide the population with sufficient food. This includes the entire food supply system, from agricultural production and processing to the sale of finished products. Because there can be a significant impact on the food supply if the system is disrupted, nutrition is considered a Critical Infrastructure Sector (BBK 2022). Critical infrastructures form the basic framework of a functioning society, supply the population with vital goods and services at all times and must therefore be protected.

In Germany, these critical services are provided directly by private-sector actors, such as farms, processing companies and distribution firms. In addition, the state plays a central and overriding role, for example, in ensuring the quality of food, providing supplies in the event of a crisis or promoting the population’s own precautions (BBK 2022). This is the responsibility of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) and the subordinate Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food (BLE).

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Erstellt: September 2023

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