L. Yerysh E. Novikov

senior Lecturer of Donetsk National University of Economy and Trade named after Mykhaylo Tugan – Baranovsky Ukraine

graduate student of Donetsk National University of Economy and Trade named after Mykhaylo Tugan – Baranovsky Ukraine

Ensuring global food security in the conditions of accelerated climate change

Ensuring global food security is one of the most urgent issues of international economic policy coordination. The core reason for the World to face such a challenge is a decrease of volume of world agricultural production as well as including climate change, and at the same time increasing the consumption of provision, mainly due to the increase of population.

It should be noted that interpretation of the concept of food security is very diverse. Food and Agriculture Organization of UN (FAO) suggests the following interpretation; ‘It is a kind of conditions when all people, at any time, have physical, social and economic access to safe and nutritious food that meets their needs for an active and healthy life’. This definition includes availability, stability, and use of food resources [1].

The National Institute for Strategic Studies of Ukraine suggests its own definition of food security. It lies in the level of food supply to population, which provides social and political stability in society, survival and development of the nation, individuals, families, sustainable economic development [2].

In the last decade the problem of food has become so sharp that international society faced food crisis. In this relations it’s reasonable to classify countries into three different groups in the context of the impact on global food security: import-oriented, export-oriented, and sufficient states.

Having in mind that problem of food security is a global issue it should be noted that activities related to such objectives are carried by more than 30 international institutions. The leading international organizations in this area are specialized UN agencies FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), International Fund for Agricultural Development, WFC (World Food Council), World Food Program – a joint body of FAO and the UN, established to provide food aid.

In recent years one can observe a tendency to strengthen the environmental aspects of food security, mainly due to a limited number of natural resources and the necessity of transition to a new conservation system of management. The process of climate changes badly affects the agricultural production of food, and has direct impact on food production. Temperature changes and precipitation associated with greenhouse gases, make changes in the food possibilities of lands.

In various economy spheres climate change can cause various negative effects. Thus in livestock sector climate modification will increase demand for water. Flooding and drought deteriorate synchronization between pollination and flowering of plants, leading to loss of food and destruction of plants [3].

Despite international obligations to reduce hazard air emissions, average annual temperature is still rising. The main constraint against polluting emissions is the Kyoto Protocol. It is an international agreement on limiting emissions of harmful greenhouse gases. The main purpose of this agreement is to stabilize levels of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere that prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference on the world’s climate system

The main activities of FAO are information management, providing information on development in agriculture. Information resources of FAO are used in multiple projects. Nearly 40 years of its existence FAO promotes the proliferation of innovative programs to combat agricultural pests. FAO also provides technical assistance for farmers, such as an aid in increasing food potential.

The consequences of climate change will spread evenly with no perspective, and the most vulnerable regions are those in which food insecurity is felt exceptionally strongly. These are mainly regions of Africa in the south of Sahara and South Asia region, where the highest level of malnutrition in the world is observed. In African case, approximately 650 million people live at the expense of nonirrigated agriculture, existing in conditions of shortages of food and drinkable water and all these problems are getting worse with climate change. Approximately till 2025 mankind will lose two-thirds of lands suitable for agriculture, like is estimated by FAO [4].

Thus, further climate change will cause a reduction of global food security, and in this context conflicts based on food security will play a significant role, as well as seizure of new territories suitable for agriculture. Crop capacity and livestock productivity will suffer not only from climate change, but from the effect that this process will influence ecosystems and deteriorate the balance between crops and pollinators, pests and their natural enemies. Change of environment, temperature, humidity will lead to spread of animal pests and plant pests and new diseases of animals and plants and so on.

Unquestionably the climate change will affect the use of food. Permanent rise of costs on food and drinkable water may exacerbate the problem of malnutrition, and also lead to insanitation and health risks. The disease will appear in consecutive regions, which in turn will lead to spreading of infectious diseases. Systematic malnutrition will result in lower efficiency and reduce profits.

Global food security in the context of climate change contributes to the emergence of new threats and at the same time affects the growth of individual vulnerability of people and society as a whole. Forced degradation of natural resources in combination with extremely high and low temperatures, floods and droughts conditioned by global climate change will lead to the depletion of natural resources of the Earth and to the impossibility of ensuring full-fledged food security.

Thus, the problem of global food security in the context of climate change becomes more and more significant due to many reasons. Ensuring global food security should be of a top priority in state policy, including a wide range of national, economic, social, demographic and environmental factors.

Literature:

1. Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis. [Electrical resource]. - Mode of access:<http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/?src=/climate/ipcc_tar/wg1/006.htm >.

2. "National Institute of Strategic Studies of Ukraine", "ECONOMIC SECURITY IN UKRAINE: THE ESSENCE and towards." [Electronic resource]. - Mode of access <http://old.niss.gov.ua/book/rozdil/rozd11.htm>.

3. Kyol M. A. Nielsen and N.K. Stenset 2011. Possible impacts of climate change on pollination. FAO, Rome.

4. Schlenker and Lobell. Robust Negative Impacts of Climate Change on African Agriculture. 2010. - Environmental Research Letters. 5 014010