Food Security in an Uncertain World: An International Perspective(15 Frontiers of Economics and Globalization)

International trade agreements are central to food security. The links between trade and the four dimensions in food security (availability, access, utilization, and stability) are examined. Freer trade in agricultural products provides additional food security. This is bolstered by factors such as increasing the use of GMOs, reducing food waste, and increasing investment in research and development. Also important is the ability of poor people to obtain food in the presence of transportation bottlenecks. Since low-income households spend most of their money on food, policy makers need to be aware of the harm caused by high and volatile food prices. Thus, food security and poverty are very much linked. We provide an understanding of the meaning and measurement of food security and the impacts of government policies in poverty alleviation. In terms of investment in research and development, even with increased productivity, problems attached to food security will remain unless there are significant changes in global income distribution. Global food shortages are due more to the lack of purchasing power rather than lack of food supplies, with the food gap continuing to widen.

Table of Contents:
Food Security: Starvation in the Midst of Plenty. Trade and Food Security: Links, Processes, and Prospects. Macroeconomic Policies and Food Security. Food Security Measurement: An Empirical Approach. Food Security Issues: Concepts and the Role of Emerging Markets. An Income-based Food Security Indicator for Agricultural Technology Impact Assessment. Dual Nature and the Human Face of Food (In)security. Copyright page. Food Security in an Uncertain World. List of Contributors. Frontiers of economics and globalization. Food Security in an Uncertain World. Innovations in International Food Assistance Strategies and Therapeutic Food Supply Chains. Managing High and Volatile Food Prices in Developing Countries Since 2000. Food Security and Anti-Piracy Strategies: The Economics of Protecting World Food Program Shipments. World Population, Food Growth, and Food Security Challenges. Genetic Engineering and Food Security: A Welfare Economics Perspective. Who Will Feed the Growing Population in the Developing Nations? Implications of Bioenergy Production. Food Security and Conflict. Major Trends in Diets and Nutrition: A Global Perspective to 2050. Dietary Change and Global Drivers of Change: How Can We Improve the Nutritional Status of the Bottom Billion?. Regional and National Rice Development Strategies for Food Security in West Africa. Acknowledgments.

Review :
The editors present a collection of expert contributions that together provide a comprehensive examination of intersection between trade agreements and the four aspects of global food security: availability, access, utilization, and stability. The seventeen contributions that make up the main body of the text cover trade and food security, macroeconomic policies and food security, food security measurement, and a wide variety of other food security issues. Andrew Schmitz is a faculty member of the University of Florida. P. Lynn Kennedy is a faculty member of Louisiana State University. Troy G. Schmitz is a faculty member of Arizona State University.