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Ann Myatt James Penn State University

Food Security in an Insecure World: Potential Outcomes of Global Climate Change for US Food Assistance Institutions. Ann Myatt James Penn State University. Dawn Drake University of Tennessee. Hunger remains a problem in the US Why is there hunger? No root cause

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Ann Myatt James Penn State University

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  1. Food Security in an Insecure World: Potential Outcomes of Global Climate Change for US Food Assistance Institutions Ann Myatt James Penn State University Dawn Drake University of Tennessee

  2. Hunger remains a problem in the US • Why is there hunger? • No root cause • Often emerges as a problem of individuals/households who lack access to financial resources • To whom do hungry people turn? • Government and non-government assistance programs • But…cash resources may be becoming increasingly important …for both individuals and institutions • What does global climate change have to do with hunger and institutions?

  3. US Food Security and Hunger • Brief history • Key Concepts: • Hunger: The uneasy or painful sensation resulting from a prolonged, involuntary lack of access to food (Bickel et al., 2000; Nord et al., 2007) • Food Security: Individuals who are unable to obtain “physical and economic access to enough food to lead a healthy and active life” (Foreign Agricultural Service, USDA, 1999). • Current Conversations in US • Occurring within 2 groups • Anti-Hunger • Community Food Security

  4. Anti-Hunger: • Social policy, economics, sociology, health sciences • Hunger seen as a problem of individuals/households • Individuals and households need to access and obtain food resources • Talk about individual/household diets, cooking abilities, and other risk factors • Discussions are home-centered & people-centered; do not think about changes occurring globally & in the natural environment

  5. Community Food Security: • Community of activists, researchers, and educators representing urban food interests, farmland preservation, sustainable agriculture, rural development (and more) • Hunger seen as problem of communities • Talk about long-term solutions, food access, self-production, local/regional food systems, empowering community members • Discussions use “whole systems” thinking; think about social and ecological systems • BUT conversation are limited to community scale NOT within a global environmental context

  6. Global-Local Linkages http://www.globaled.org.nz/gecnews/2005/oct/images/cartoonbook_000.JPG

  7. Case Study: Dairy Products

  8. The Economics of Mastitis and High Somatic Cell Count • Costs of treatment, culling, and lost milk • Decreased production and components (casein, lactose, calcium, starter enzymes) • Shorter shelf life, strange tastes, discoloring • $1.7 billion per year in United States • $1 in prevention increases production by $5

  9. Short-run vs. Long-run Costs of Global Climate Change in the US Dairy Industry • In the short-run, farmers absorb most of the costs of increased SCC • In the long-run, however, costs will be felt by both the farmer and the consumer

  10. Short-run Costs to Farmer • Discarded milk • Lost marketability • Premature culling • Lack of access to incentives provided by milk buyers

  11. Long-run Costs to Farmers Two Possible Solutions • Decreased farm profits vs.

  12. Long-run Costs to Consumers • Increasing costs for milk and dairy products • Milk buyers pay higher premiums to farmers • Decreasing supply • Boutique products

  13. Potential Institutional Impacts • Governmental Programs • Increasing Costs: • For basic dietary necessities • Entitlement programs (FSP and school breakfast/lunch) adjusted annually for inflation • Non-entitlement programs (WIC), not necessarily adjusted for inflation but price increases affect costs of food • Due to increased rates of participation • Assuming current/historical US wage trends

  14. Non-Governmental Programs • Increasing Costs: • For basic dietary necessities: • Increasing costs of production often results in fewer federally donated agricultural surpluses • Declines in food donations as food processors work to increase manufacturing efficiencies • Declines in food donations as retail outlets increase sales of damaged or unwanted products • May cause programs to have to purchase foodstuffs at increased, retail prices • Due to increased rates of participation • Assuming current/historical US wage trends

  15. Future Research • What happens when we feed cars instead of cows? • Alternative dairy products? • What can we learn from the experiences of the energy sector? • What are the short-term and long-term effects of rising food prices on US food assistance institutions?

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