Nature of Food and Poverty

1. Nature of Food and Poverty Canadian & World Issues

2. Nature of Food and Poverty • The Importance of Food • Geography of Hunger and Poverty • Factors Affecting Food Supply • The Poverty Cycle

3. The Importance of Food • In the Global Village of 100 people, the villagers have many animals. They help to produce food or are a source of food. They are: • 31 sheep and goats • 23 cows, bulls, and oxen • 15 pigs • 3 camels • 2 horses • 189 chickens (yes, there are nearly TWICE as many chickens as people in the Global Village!)

4. The Importance of Food • There is no shortage of food in the Global Village. If all the food were divided equally, everyone would have enough to eat. But the food is not divided equally…. So, although there is enough food to feed the villagers, not everyone is well fed: • 60 people are always hungry, and 26 of these are severely undernourished • 16 other people go to bed hungry at least some of the time • Only 24 people always have enough to eat.

5. The Importance of Food • In 1966, the United Nations declared that people have a universal right to adequate food. In your opinion, is an adequate food supply a human right? “Feed the family and trade the leftovers.” “Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere.”

6. The Importance of Food • Why do we eat? • Meets the physiological (cell replacement & growth), psychological, and cultural needs • Food is also required for ENERGY • The body burns kilojoules (produced from food ingested) • 1 kJ = the amount of energy required to move a mass of one kilogram a distance of 1 meter at an acceleration of 1 m/s • The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a standard of 10 000 kJ/person on a daily basis

7. The Importance of Food • How is energy consumed? • Metabolism – basic body functions such as breathing, muscle action, blood circulation, maintaining constant body temperature (36.9°C) • Physical Growth – requirements peak at 15 – 17 years of age, body maturity and cell replacements • Physical Activity – walking consumes 1000 kJ/day, energy required for work varies depending on type of work

8. The Importance of Food • What are the sources of kilojoules? • Carbohydrates • Sugars and starch • Wheat, corn, rice and potato • Easy to produce food and widely available • Proteins • Meat, milk products, eggs, fish (first class proteins), wheat, vegetables (second class proteins) • Are used as a measure of the quality of a nation’s diet • Are often expensive and scare • Are the basic building blocks of cells (amino acids) • Average intake of proteins should be 56 g/day

9. The Importance of Food • What are the sources of kilojoules? (continued) • Fats • Butter, lard, egg yolk, vegetable oil • Most concentrated form of food energy • If energy is not burned, it is stored by the body • The body also needs… • Minerals such as calcium and iron • Vitamins such as A, B, C • Fibre – good for digestion • Water

10. The Importance of Food • What are the factors affecting energy intake? • Age • Size • Climate (the colder the climate the more kJ required) • Sex • Activity • Eating habits

11. The Importance of Food • Daily Average Food Availability • There are 4.186 kilojoules (kJ) in 1 calorie • National average food availability is measured in kilojoules per capita per day (kJ/c/d) • Calculate the percentage of each country’s national average food availability to the Standard Nutrition Unit of 10 350 kJ/c/d • e.g. Canada’s national average food availability = 14 576 • 14 576 ÷ 10 350 x 100 = 140% • Create a shaded pattern to illustrate over/under SNU • Describe overall pattern and any anomalies

12. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • The next few slides are to be read SILENTLY by everyone in the room. • Take the time to internalize each slide as you read it.

13. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • We have all been hungry at some time: a missed meal, a delayed dinner…. Perhaps you have been sick and unable to eat. • You have felt the gnawing pain of hunger. • You may recall being tired or cranky as your body adapted to the lack of energy. • Think back to such a time and remember that feeling. • Feel it again now.

14. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Now imagine you are in a situation where you cannot get food and this feeling continues for a whole day. • How does the feeling of hunger change? • Imagine it. • How does your body react to the lack of food? • Imagine the consequences of a day without food.

15. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • It is one week later and the only food you’ve eaten is some bread and water. • You have lost weight as your body draws from its reserves. • Imagine the feeling of hunger now. • Imagine how your ability to perform simple tasks has been affected.

16. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Imagine the situation continuing for months… • years… • or a lifetime… • Any thoughts, feelings, or consequences of hunger that you mentally visualized?

17. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Why do diets differ around the world? • Culture & Taboos – according to certain religions, certain foods may or may not be eaten • Money – Canadians have the opportunity to purchase many types of exotic foods • Nutrition – many people focus on eating healthy often times nutritious foods are rather costly • Environment – many diets are based in what can be grown in a certain area

18. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Watch Supersize Me • Write a two-page reflection paper on “The North American Perception of Food”

19. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Starvation is a state of suffering caused by not having enough food to sustain life. • Famine is an extreme scarcity of food that occurs when the resource base shrinks because of a natural phenomenon such as drought. • Cash crops are agricultural products that are grown solely for sale, rather than for consumption by the growers.

20. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Chronic hunger is a condition in which essential nutrients are excluded from the diet over an extended period. • Malnutrition is a condition in which there is a deficiency of one or more proteins, minerals, or vitamins in a diet.

21. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • The global food system is based on large scale commercialization, domination by large transnational corporations who control trade and pricing in food commodities and vast amounts of farmers, workers, and land and on an increasing emphasis on growing cash-crops for export. • Many developing countries are economically dependent on single commodities. Commodity and food prices have not risen significantly in the past decade while the cost of input has risen dramatically.

22. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • The global food system responded to the demands of rapidly growing population throughout the second half of the twentieth century with some success. • BUT not all the world’s peoples enjoyed this expansion of food supplies (with problems such as the depletion of fish stocks and the exhaustion of farmland). • It is clear that our present methods of producing, processing, and distributing food will NOT solve world hunger.

23. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • We are part of a global food system. The peanut farmer in Senegal is probably not producing food for local needs. The pressure to produce cash crops for export over domestic food crops is huge. This might be best exemplified by the Global Chocolate Bar! • Sugar - • Cocoa - • Peanuts - • Palm Oil - • Coconut Oil - • Soybean Oil - • Milk - } NICARAGUA IVORY COAST SENEGAL MALAYSIA THE PHILIPPINES BRAZIL CANADA

24. Geography of Poverty & Hunger • Myths & Facts - Read the dozen statements regarding world hunger and determine whether they are myths or facts. • Explanations - Identify as many reasons for global hunger that you can. • Solutions – What sorts of steps could governments take to try to ensure that everyone’s needs are met (large-scale farmers, small-scale farmers, and the hungry poor)? What could YOU do?

25. Factors Affecting Food Supply • Plants & Animals • Government Policy • Traditional Food Production • Cash Crops & Agribusinesses • Modern Food Production • Environmental Deterioration • Pests • Control of Land • Military Spending • Natural Hazards • Foreign Aid

26. Factors Affecting Food Supply • Strategies that have been used to increase the global food supply include…. • Increasing the amount of land under cultivation • Increasing the yields per hectare of crops • Increasing the number of crops grown on each hectare of cropland • Replacing lower yielding crops with higher yielding crops • Reducing post harvest losses (pests & spoilage) • Reducing the use of feed for animals (there is enough grain to feed 7.8 billion people) • Reducing overconsumption and waste of food

27. Factors Affecting Food Supply • Did you know that… • In Canada crops are purposefully not grown or are destroyed in order to keep supply in line with demand so that prices stay higher. • The FAO’s latest estimates indicate that in 1997-1999, there were 815 million undernourished people in the world: • 777 million in developing countries, • 27 million in countries switching to a market economy, and • 11 million in industrialized countries.

28. The Poverty Cycle Shortened Life Expectancy High Death Rate for Children Low Disease Resistance