Food Security in Brazil - Essay Example

Food Security in Brazil     By         Location Table of Contents Food Security in Brazil Table of Contents 2 ABBREVIATIONS/Acronyms 3 1.EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 2.INTRODUCTION 4 2.1.BACKGROUND INFORMATION 4 2.2. STUDY OBJECTIVES 4 ISSUES OR CAUSES OF FOOD INSECURITY 5 MEASURES TO FOOD INSECURITY 7 CONCLUSION 9 RECOMMENDATIONS 9 Bibliography 11 ABBREVIATIONS/Acronyms GDP- gross domestic product HIV/AIDS - human immune virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this report will be finding the causes of food insecurity, the measures that would be appropriate to take critically evaluate the problem of food insecurity and be able to give the findings. The final part gives the recommendations that, if adopted, will significantly increase food security in Brazil. The reforms that have been taken by the government of Brazil are clearly analysed and the recommendations given will help the increase the management of food and thus will help to boost the food security. In general, the report will help to come up with better methods of food management and thus increase the food security. 2. INTRODUCTION 2.1.BACKGROUND INFORMATION Research proves Brazil to be a major agricultural and industrial country, factors that have made the country rank highest in Latin America with regard to economic growth. Despite the continuous improvement, there is a widespread poverty and evident financial inequalities with many concentrations of poverty in the rural areas. This has led to increased food insecurity. According to the World Health Organization website, The World Food Summit of 1996 sought to define food security, noting that it exists “when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life”. Brazil, like most of the developing countries faces a major challenge of hunger where more than six million citizens are facing starvation (The Economist 2009). Brazil is the largest country in South America with over 190 million citizens. As the fourth leading food exporter, a small population approximated to be 30% of the entire population was faced with constant food insecurity in 2009 (Government of Brazil 2010). Understanding the root causes of food insecurity will help to offer a solution to this problem. 2.2. STUDY OBJECTIVES The main objective of this study is to delve into the food security issues in Brazil and give the recommendations that will help better the current situation. The study will also analyse the causes of food insecurity, and measures that are currently in place to boost food security. This report will also look at the weakness of the existing measures and reasons why these measures have not handled the problem of food insecurity effectively. The recommendations will be put in place by the government of Brazil to help solve the problem of food insecurity. ISSUES OR CAUSES OF FOOD INSECURITY There is an urgent need to come up with policies that will boost the food production and also help prevent wastage of produce. Scholars have proved the extend to which Brazil government has made steps towards eradication of poverty as well as food insecurity. Despite the fact that Brazil is not leading in economic development, it has proved to outstrip leading economies like china and India. This success is highly attributed to pro-poor policies that the leaders of the country. The causes of food insecurity to most developing countries are mostly due to poor management and implementation of policies. Poor production methods In Brazil, poor methods of production have accelerated the problem of food insecurity. The poor production methods have been caused by poor quality land and weather conditions (Rigler and Bisas, 2010, p220). This is because the quality and quantity of food produced vary with seasons, weather patterns, land quality and geographical conditions (Paarlberg, 2012, p128). This is because each region has different growing conditions with the other and thus produce different variety of food. For example, the large central region has an almost perfect climate has plentiful of rains in the summer within warm and dry winters making it perfect for food production, but the method employed by the farmers in planting is poor (Nagathu, 2015,p78) and this leads to low production of food. Furthermore, the fertilizers which are mostly needed to boost food production is unavailable to most of the farmers thus contributing to poor production methods. Poor Seeds These have also contributed greatly to the ability of Brazilian population to produce food that can meet the demand of its population (Braun 2008, p. 91). These poor seeds and leads to low production and thus leaving the people in need of food from other parts of the world (Cheru and Modi 2013, p.12).The seed at some instances have failed to germinate or have been incompatible with the climate in the region. This leads to great loss by the farmers, thus affecting their ability to provide and also other basic needs as money is spent trying to buy food, this worsens the situation because most of the Brazilians are poor thus unable fully to feed themselves. They give emphasis on the production of cash crops which they lack the skills necessary (Nagathu, 2015, p176). Most of the people in Brazil have turned to growth of crops for export which cannot be eaten without first undergoing processing yet they do not have processing machines. Furthermore, these crops performs poorly due to lack of skill and knowledge required to manage them. . Brazil climate The main problem that Brazilians are faced with is access to food. Production is not a big problem though its much concentrated in the southern and western parts of the country. This means, therefore, that there is a big population approximated to be about 60% of the population that is faced with food insecurity problem. These are the people living in the northern part of Brazil (FAO 2011). The northeast part of Brazil suffers from recurring droughts and receives about twenty inches of rain a year. This makes it impossible for the farmers in this region to plant and harvest enough food. This is the same cause with the southern part with receives enough rains that is enough to grow the required crops, but this region is prone to floods and frost thus all the planted crops are destroyed by these floods (McDonald, 2010, p57). Futher more climate in this region has recently changed significantly, thus making it difficult to predict the weather season and this has led to crop failure. Land Ownership And Poverty Most of the land in the large central region is owned by several rich individuals, further the adoption of green land reform in Brazil has denied the poor farmers who are the main producers of staple food a chance to own land (Ehui, 2008, p105). Most of the poor population has no means to purchase the inputs required so as to produce enough food. These inputs include the fertilizers and the quality food used in production (Lois, 2010p89). Use of pesticides has also turned the soil acidic, thus forcing the farmers to spend more by purchasing basic fertilizers to neutralize. Poverty has also been accelerated by HIV/AIDS, which have affected the most poor people (Pope and Mrlow, 2009, p76). Brazils GDP has weakened consistently due to increase in poverty levels and this has resulted to food insecurity. MEASURES TO FOOD INSECURITY The problems of food insecurity can be greatly reduced if correct actions and actions could be taken. These measures would include the following: The government through research have come up with quality seeds that can produce enough food so that the population can be able to feed itself. Nerlove and Basel (2006), in their research believes that there is need for the government to introduce new technologies that will enhance success for there is the potential to increase yields on the high potential lands. Therefore, through mechanized food production methods, the government has sought for a long lasting solution. Further, land reforms have also been introduced in Brazil to ensure that there is equitable land distribution. The agrarian land reforms have been introduced so that land is now more effectively be utilized and thus leading to increase in food production. The government has conducted seminars to educate the people on the need to plan for their families. Family planning seminars have been organized so that the population growth can be matched by the growth in food production. This will ensure that the food produced is enough to feed the population and store some in case of an emergency and thus will have enough food security. This has helped the poor families to reduce the burden of feeding their families and thus there is more food security. This has also increased the countrys GDP by 3% in the last three years (Government of Brazil, 2010). The government of Brazil has invested heavily in agriculture machinery to ensure that the land will be effectively utilised and food production has been enhanced. In year 2012, the government purchased machinery worth millions of shillings so that production of food can be made easy. This has resulted in an increase in levels of production in the last two years. Further, in his edition, Nagothu (2015) believe that the need to identify and analyze the factors and drivers that have played a critical role in shaping the food system is inevitable. The government also sensitizes the public matters of financial literacy. This is after confirmation that the increased poverty, especially in the rural areas is due to high levels of illiteracy on financial matters (Kerrigan, 2013). As such, in the year 2012, more than two million citizens received financial literacy knowledge to help them overcome poverty problems. Further, Braun (2008) asserts that the focus on urban food security policies will help boost the financial position of people and thus has increased the living standards of the people thus contributing to food security. CONCLUSION The fact that food insecurity remains an unending issue, it is advisable to take note of the Brazilian Economy, understanding better how trade and better business helps boost the current level of food production. Such a step will be significant in the coming up with comprehensive measures to fight food insecurity. As previously noted, the concept of food security is looked at as including both physical and economic access to food that meets peoples dietary needs as well as their food preferences. It is thus paramount to take the recommendation below to help solve the problem. This is because in Brazil, health problems related to dietary excess are an ever increasing threat, and thus malnutrition and foodborne diarrhoea are becoming double burden. RECOMMENDATIONS Through this report, it is will be possible to significantly increase the food production in Brazil and hence have a food secure nation. The government of Brazil should also come with better methods and ways to control the HIV/AIDS menace that has greatly affected the food productivity. The government has also done very little to help enhance the trade, which contributes to thirty percent of the countrys economy. If more is done in this sector, more food can be produced and this can greatly help to boost the food security. If most of the measures taken by the government discussed in this report will continue to be implemented, the Food security in Brazil will be greatly boosted and probably be a food secured country by the year 2050. Bibliography Barrett, C. 2008. Food security and food assistance programs. In B. Gardner and G. Rausser, eds, Handbook of Agricultural Economics, Elsevier Science. B.V .Volume 2. Behnassi, M., Dragan, S. and Yaya, H. 2011. Global food insecurity rethinking agricultural and rural development paradigm and policy. Dordrecht New York: Springer. Braun, J. 2008. Urban food insecurity and malnutrition in developing countries trends, policies, and research implications. Washington, DC: IFPRI. Cheru, F. and Modi, R. 2013. Agricultural development and food security in Africa the impact of Chinese, Indian & Brazilian Investments. London: Zed Books. Coates, J. et al. 2006. Commonalities in the experience of household food insecurity across cultures: what are measures missing? Journal of Nutrition. 136, pp. 1438S-1448S. Ehui, S. 2008. Food security in sub-Saharan Africa to 2020, Nairobi, Kenya: International Livestock Research Institute. FAO (2011) ‘Hunger’, Rome: FAO, http://www.fao.org/hunger/en/ (last accessed 16 March 2015). FAO, 2006. The Sixth World Food Survey, Rome, Italy. Fighting Hunger with Human Rights. FIAN. [Online]. [3 March 2015]. Available from: http://www.fian.org/cases/letter-campaigns/madagascar-threat-of-large-scale-land-acquisition-by-foreign-companies/fcampaign_view. Accessed 3/3/15 Gilson, I. and Fouad, A, 2014. Trade Policy and Food Security Improving Access to Food in Developing Countries in the Wake of High World Prices. Washington: World Bank Publications. Government of Brazil (2010), National Council on Food Security and Nutrition (CONSEA), ‘Food Security and Nutrition and the Human Right to Sufficient Food in Brazil’,. Kac, G, et al. 2012. Severe food insecurity is associated with obesity among Brazilian adolescent females. Public Health Nutrition. 15(10), pp.1854-60. Kerrigan, D. 2013. The global HIV epidemics among sex workers. Washington, D.C: World Bank. Louis, R. 2010, South America on a shoestring, Footscray, Vic. London: Lonely Planet McDonald, B. 2010. Food security. Cambridge: Polity Nagothu, U. 2015, Food security and development: country case studies, Abingdon, Oxon New York: Routledge. Nerlove, M. Vosti, S. and Basel, W. 2006. Role of farm-level diversification in the adoption of modern technology in Brazil. Washington, D.C: International Food Policy Research Institute. Nord, M. and Hopwood, H. 2007. Recent advances provide improved tools for measuring children’s food security. Journal of Nutrition. 137, pp. 533-536. Paarlberg, R. 2012. Governance and food security in an age of globalization. Washington, D.C: International Food Policy Research Institute Pope, C. and Malow, R. 2009. HIV/AIDS: global frontiers in prevention/intervention. New York: Routledge. Ringler, C. Biswas, A. and Cline, S. 2010. Global change impacts on water and food security. Berlin Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. Ruel, M. T., Haddad, L. and Garrett J. L. 2007. Rapid urbanization and the challenges of obtaining food and nutrition security, In: Semba RD, Bloem MW, eds. Nutrition and Health in developing countries. Totowa, NJ, Humana Press. Sarath Fernando, Co-Secretary of the Movement for National Land and  Agricultural reform (MOLNAR), Asian Peasant Coalition (APC) Media Release, July 25, 2009. [Online]. [3 March 2015]. Available from: http://farmlandgrab.org/6501 Tapiador, F. 2008. Rural analysis and management an earth science approach to rural science. Berlin New York: Springer. The Economist. 2009. Welfare in Brazil, Joining Forces. The Economist. [Online]. [3 March 2015]. Available from: http://www.economist.com/node/215837 Read More