Sameera Casmod | sameerac@radioislam.co.za
01 May 2024 | 08:17 SAST
1-minute read

Image: Food Security Information Network

The recently released Global Report on Food Crisis 2024 emphasises the monumental task of achieving the goal of eradicating hunger by 2030.

According to the report, nearly 282 million people faced high levels of acute food insecurity in 2023, indicating an increase of 24 million people from the previous year.

The factors contributing to this surge include expanded analysis coverage and worsening acute food insecurity in several regions, surpassing any improvements seen elsewhere.

A food crisis is defined as inadequate quantities of food to provide for a growing world population, environmental expert Yunus Mitha explained on Radio Islam.

Mitha emphasises the disproportionate distribution of food, rampant wastage, and the monopolisation of food production as key drivers behind the crisis.

Additionally, conflicts, such as those in Ukraine and Palestine, have a detrimental effect on exacerbating food production challenges, Mitha said.

Food consumption patterns have also changed drastically, with a shift from consuming nutritious food to “food-like” substances manufactured by big businesses.

“We don’t eat food anymore. We eat something that’s food-like, but it’s not generally food,” Mitha said.

The erosion of staple diets like maize over the past five decades can be attributed to monopolistic control over food production.

Mitha raised concerns about legislative efforts in some countries, like the United States, aiming to restrict homegrown vegetable cultivation, further entrenching corporate dominance in the food industry.

Additionally, Mitha discussed the pervasive issue of food wastage. Mitha asserts that the sheer volume of discarded food could easily alleviate hunger worldwide if managed efficiently. It is the prevalent attitudes of greed and profit that manipulate food systems and intensify the crisis, Mitha notes.

“There isn’t a shortage of food, but it is how this food is managed—the attitude, the greed for profit—that has manipulated the situation,” Mitha said.

Listen to the full interview on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat here.