Wicked problems: the challenge of food safety versus food security—working towards the SDG goals?

Pacific Islands Families Study: Household Food Security during Pregnancy and Secondary School Educational Achievement

Nutritional environment in early life is a key factor for brain development and function. It is important to understand the relationship between nutrition in early life and academic achievement in adolescence. The birth cohort of the Pacific Islands Families (PIF) study was born in the year 2000. When their child was six weeks old, mothers were asked questions concerning food security over the past year. Two binary measures of food security were derived as previously used in PIF and also by the Ministry of Health (MOH). In 2020, records of academic achievement from the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) for 649 (317 female, 332 male) cohort members showed progressive achievement at levels 1, 2, and 3 of NCEA and allowed University Entrance (UE) to be assessed. The prevalence of food insecurity was not different for sex but high at 29% and 42% using the PIF and MOH definitions of food insecurity, respectively. More females (27%) than males (18%) achieved UE as their highest qualification, and more males (40%) than females (31%) achieved NCEA levels 1 or 2 as their highest qualification. UE was achieved by 25% of those born into food-secure households and 17% from food-insecure households. Logistic regression demonstrated that the odds of achieving UE were 1.8-fold (95% CI 1.2, 2.6, p = 0.003) higher in females than males and, independently, 1.6-fold (95% CI 1.1, 2.5 p = 0.026) higher if the household was food secure. This work emphasises the importance of maternal and early-life food security for subsequent academic achievement and the well-being of future generations.

Determining Food Stability to Achieve Food Security

Food security, as part as public health protection, constitutes one of the main objectives for countries aiming to ensure the health of all their citizens. However, food security is compromised worldwide by conflict, political instability, or economic crises, both in developed and developing countries. Conversely, because of the importance of agriculture to the economies of rural areas both in developed and developing countries, this sector can contribute to improving food stability, as well as to furthering food security. Thus, livestock and traditional meat products represent a key factor in ensuring food availability. Overall, biosecurity measures improve animal welfare by decreasing the occurrence of diseases that compromise the stability by causing fluctuations in the availability of meat and animal-derived food products such as milk, eggs, or traditional fermented products. As a consequence, an absence of biosecurity measures affects food security (in its quantitative definition, as described above) as well as the productive, sanitary, and environmental sustainability of the rural environment. Products of animal origin support local trade and the regional economy, while contributing to the availability of foods without great external dependence. The manufacture of foods of animal origin aims to create products that are durable and that maintain food availability for long periods of time, even during seasons with scarce resources. Thus, dry-cured or fermented meat products play an important role in food availability. Food security also refers to food access under healthy economic conditions; therefore, knowledge of the main tools that guarantee the safety of these kinds of food products is essential to achieving food stability and further food security.

Food exports and imports of New Zealand in relation to the food-based dietary guidelines

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

It has not been reported that previously how much food New Zealand (NZ), population 4.9 million (M), exports and imports in terms of how many people this food would feed if the food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG) were followed. In New Zealand, 40% of adults and 20% of children live in a household with severe to moderate food insecurity.

METHODS

Official data for foods and beverages exported and imported between 2016 and 2018 was obtained from Statistics New Zealand. Harmonised food classifications were matched to either a food group or as discretionary foods or ingredients. Standard serving sizes in grams and number of servings/day from each food group viz; vegetables, 5 servings/day; fruit, 2 servings/day; grains 6 servings/day; meat and protein foods 2.5 servings/day: and dairy 2.5 servings/day were used to determine how many people would be fed each year with the food traded. Together these servings should meet a daily energy intake in the order of 8 MJ. The trade of discretionary foods and ingredients, alcoholic beverages, butter and sugar was also examined.

RESULTS

According to the guidelines the quantity of food exported each year by NZ had enough numbers of servings to feed 39 M dairy, 11.5 M meat, seafood and other protein, 2 M vegetables and 10 M fruit day/year. Imports were dominated by grains, enough to feed 9 M six servings a day/year. Total food energy exported and imported was enough to meet the energy requirements for 20 M (30% from butter) and 10 M (27% from sugar), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The high prevalence of food insecurity and obesity in NZ could be partially attributed to the disconnect between the quantity, nutritional quality and diversity of foods imported and exported.