Whom to Blame for the Shortage of Food?
6:28 PM Our World 0 Comments

In recent years, world has found itself as a hub for food wastage in simultaneous with shortage of food. This may be due to dearth of proper food management. With the advancement in technology, there has been a tremendous increase in food production, however, it doesn't meet the demands of the outbursting populations in the world. Consequently, many people all over the world are unable to get access to food. Even the wealthiest countries of the world aren't able to find a solution to this problem. But it begs the question – why the world is confronting the shortage of food?

According to Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), every 2 children out of 10 under the age of 5 are becoming victims of the hunger epidemic. In addition to this, SIK (The Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology) report 2011 tells that 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted every year which equals half of the world’s total food consumption. On an average, over 100 kg of food is wasted per person every year. Astoundingly, wastage of food is more predominant in developed countries than developing and under-developed countries. In North America itself, there had been wastage of food which costs over 62 trillion rupees ( $1 trillion ) which is highly extortionate when compared to underdeveloped countries.

The major reason for wastage of food in the under-developed countries is during the production, whereas during consumption in developed countries. In case of underdeveloped countries, stats reveal that every 1 out of three children are malnourished. The major part of food wastage is during weddings. A survey conducted by the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS) by 10 professors in India gave commiserative results. The report showed that 943 tonnes of quality food is wasted in Bangalore (India) itself, which can feed 2.6 crore hunger mouths. The development of cold storage facilities in developing and under-developed countries is not to the scale. Most of the food is dissipated in North American countries and European nations even affecting their per capita incomes.

The solution to this problem is making people sensible about the wastage of food. There should be a considerable amelioration in the techniques of food production especially in underdeveloped countries who still follow conventional methods. Organizations which collect the food that is wasted in hotels and weddings and distribute food to the hungry should be dilated. Cold storage facilities and other infrastructure should be developed. The world has enough production to feed all the mouths, but there is a necessity to balance the economics.

In panorama of the above facts, there is a need to think with our mind’s eye-why millions of innocent people should suffer because of the irresponsibility of a few people? If there is no child who sleeps with hunger, if there is no one who dies of hunger, we can see a better world. Such a projection would ensure the mankind with a sustainable future. Let us hope that this dream would be achieved one or the other day.