Chapter No.

1
Introduction

Evolution of the Food Security Definitions.

All living things need food to stay healthy and use nutrients to grow their body. Food gives the
feeling of comforts and happiness to man. Adequate nutrients play an important role for human
functions like body growth, motivation and educational attainment etc.
Food is universally recognized as the basic human right. And yet one in nine people go hungry
around the world. In such a gloomy state, the attainment of food security is the greatest goal for
the international and national organizations.
Since mid-1970, concept of food security has been introduced, evolved, developed and
diversified at the academic level. World Food Summit defined food security in 1974 as the
availability of basic food stuffs, at all times, in order to raise the food consumption and to control
food prices. In 1983, FAO analyzed its concept by maintaining balance between demand and
supply of the food security. FAO (1983) defined food security,
” Ensuring that all people at all times have physical and economic access to the basic food they
need”
Analysis of the definition of food security was revisited not only at national and regional level
but also at household and individual level. The report “Poverty and Hunger” issued by World
Bank made a difference between chronic food insecurity and transitory food insecurity. The
concept of food security is redefined in such words,” access of all people at all times to enough
food for an active and healthy life”
The concept of food security has been accepted as a significant concern till 1990. Food security
was refined in a broader sense by the inclusion of the food safety and nutritional balance leading
to stay healthy and be productive.
World Food Summit (1996) has described food security as
“When all people, at all times have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and
nutritious food to meet their dietary energy requirements and food preferences for an active and
healthy life.”
In WFS (1996), Governments committed themselves to halve hunger and malnutrition from 850
million by 2015.
In 2004, FAO guides the Governments to follow the rules for the protection of the right to food
in their nations. The right to food is recognized in Article 25 of the UN Declaration of Human
Rights in 1948 but it is accepted as the right to adequate food in World Food Summit (1996). It is
the State’s responsibility to respect its people’s right to food and makes sure that every citizen is
provided with access to food.
General Types of Food Insecurity.
Food security is grouped into two sections.

 Transitory food insecurity

 Chronic food insecurity

Transitory food insecurity.

This type of food insecurity is short-term. It happens when food stocks suddenly deplete and
people are not able to access to enough food in order to meet their food demands. Transitory
food insecurity always come suddenly and cannot be predicted. This situation requires
Government intervention and welfare organizations in order to overcome it.

Chronic food insecurity.

Chronic food insecurity lasts for a long time. It occurs when people are not able to fulfill their
food demands over a sustained period of time. Chronic food insecurity is due to long time of
poverty, lack of assets and inability for an access to productive markets. Chronic food insecurity
requires long term development measures in order to tackle poverty level such as education and
awareness and provide easy accessibility to productive resources such as loans.

Seasonal food security lies between transitory and chronic food insecurity. Like a chronic food
insecurity, it can be predicted. Seasonal food insecurity is of short time like the behavior of
transitory food insecurity. It follows the cyclical pattern of food unavailability and unaccess to
food.
Dimensions of insecurity
Food security is a multidimensional concept. It is based on four pillars which are followed as:

Food Availability

Food Stability
Food Accessibility

Food Utilization

Nutritional Outcomes

Availability

Food availability focuses on the supply side and trade. It is not only concerned with quantity but
also the quality of desired food. At aggregate level, a nation’s economy depends on the total
production a year in a closed economy but it also includes food imports and exports in open
economy. At household level, a household is food secure when all its members have,
consistently, sufficient food at their disposals. So, it is the important indicator of food insecurity.
Modern farming techniques, better natural resources and political stability are required to
improve food availability.
Accessibility

Food accessibility describes about an economic and physical access by an individual to a

nutritious food which meet his dietary needs for an active and healthy life. Economic access
states the factors such as poverty, income and indicator of purchasing capacity. Physical access
relates to the infrastructure and all indicators that facilitates access to food. By improving food
accessibility, more incomes are generated from cash crops, livestock products and other
enterprises.

Utilization

Food utilization encompasses an ability of human behavior to intake food through quality diet
and sanitary drinking water in order to achieve nutritional status. Food utilization focuses on the
intra-household distribution of food. Having availability and accessibility of nutritious food,
household decides about food preparation, food consumption and food allocation. By making
provision of food safety, post-harvest loss, food diversity, better food utilization can be achieved.

Stability

When, at household level, food supply remains to be constant for a long time, food stability is
achieved. It focuses on to be food secure at all times. Stability should be in terms of availability,
accessibility and utilization. In order to achieve food security status, a household has to face
down epidemics, natural disasters, drought and crop failure etc.

Food security is a versatile concept. Food security concept is viewed from macro to micro level.
It has been scrutinized at global level, national level and household level. Food security level is
different from time to time and nation to nation. It is affected by number of factors such as
population growth, reduction in arable loss, climate change and food loss. But it can vary
significantly across the regions, countries, social groups as well as over time.

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Relationship among hunger,malnutrition and poverty
Hunger
Hunger is actually the deprivation from land, income, wage, jobs and life. When a person does
not get to have anything to eat, life becomes too much difficult for him. Hunger is th synonym
for chronic malnutrition.

Food Security level in the world

HOUSEHOLD FOOD SECURITY IN PK

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Since Pakistan is a sixth populous country of the world and it is not be able to meet the increased
demand of food in spite of the fact that Pakistan is an agricultural country, so it is necessary to
identify the determinants of food security.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

As Pakistan is an agrarian country but it cannot be able to meet the needs of growing population.
In Pakistan, a big proportion of population is unable to access the food and is deprived of food
stability due to food price hike. There are a number of studies have been done on food security at
household level using previous data sets. While the present study aims to revise and update the
current food security level and its determinants. Hopefully, the proposed study will recommend
the policies that would help the Government of Pakistan to secure food at household level.