Food security: The greatest threat to Australia’s food supply

Global food security has slumped in the past two years. See how Australia ranks compared to other nations, and what challenges we face.

A farmer ploughs a wheat field in the countryside of the northeastern city of Qamishli. Food insecurity still plagues many nations across the world. Picture: Deli Souleiman.

Australia ranks as one of the most food secure nations in the world, but people in rural areas are suffering from hunger at much higher rates than their city counterparts.

That’s according to two recent reports outlining the rate of food insecurity since the pandemic began.

But the nation’s ability to produce a secure supply of food for both domestic consumption and export markets is at risk according to one key market.

The Global Food Security Index report surveys countries based on food affordability, availability, quality, safety, and natural resources.

Australia was ranked 32 out of 113 nations for food security, with a number of strengths including food safety net programs, protein quality, percentage of population under the global poverty line, agricultural import tariffs, market access, sufficiency of supply, and more.

But volatility of agricultural production – fluctuations in agricultural productivity creating difficulty in planning a consistent food supply – was listed as a the sole challenge facing Australian food security.

High income countries topped the index, with seven of the top 10 nations based in Europe.

The index ranked Ireland as the most food secure nation globally, followed by Austria, with the United Kingdom third.

China – a nation famously focused on food security – ranked just below Australia at 34 out of 113 nations.

Corteva Agriscience chief executive vice president Tim Glenn said food security globally had declined in the past two years, with extreme weather and natural resource depletion creating a “borderless problem”.

“Farmers are continuously being asked for grow significantly more food with fewer resources and increasing scrutiny from society,” Mr Glenn said.

“These include increasing demands as our population grows, increasing complexity of farming, increasing demands for sustainable production, and increasing interest in how food is grown, and where it comes from.”

Mr Glenn said the Covid-19 pandemic has “put pressure” not only on farmers, but on the entire global food system.

Economist Impact senior manager Pratima Singh said overall food security has deteriorated in 2021.

“A lot of factors are at play … some factors like Covid-19, but there are also larger, more structural issues, particularly with climate variability,” Ms Singh said.

“We need to be more careful that our natural resources and climate factors are managed.”

ONE IN FIVE RURAL AUSTRALIANS HAVE EXPERIENCED HUNGER

The extent of food insecurity in rural Australia has been laid bare after a turbulent two years of the pandemic, drought and bushfires.

Research commissioned by Kelloggs Australia has revealed how rural communities were experiencing food insecurity.

It found that 20 per cent of rural Australians had experienced hunger and one in six had skipped a meal because they couldn’t afford it.

“This may be owed to their geographical location. The isolated nature of some regional communities in comparison to their metropolitan counterparts, leaves them more susceptible to insecure supply chains,” a Kelloggs spokesman said.

“Residents of remote towns with sparser populations are also subjected to paying more for products that are driven up to compensate for the logistic challenge that companies face to deliver to rural areas.”

Climate change was another concern that disproportionately affected rural communities.

“Extreme weather events like droughts, floods and bushfires, in recent years have greatly affected the farmers, crops and harvests – leading to additional complications in securing food supply chains within these communities,” the spokesman said.

The research showed 67 per cent of rural residents believe there are too many people living in hunger, more than were concerned at the start of the pandemic, which was due to the fact 41 per cent of these populations did have their food supply impacted by Covid-19.

In contrast, 43 per cent of people from metro areas said they were concerned about the issue.

Kelloggs Australia Charitable Fund have partnered with the Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal to provide grants for programs that combat hunger.

One of these recipients is the Morgan Volunteer Group in Morgan, SA who have been able to purchase a vehicle to deliver foodto those in need.