Food challenge during Covid-19 period

The world celebrated on October 16 the World Food Day under increasingly world hunger, due to several factors, such as the climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, which has imposed social confinement in every country.

According to data from the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation, some 132 million people may join this year's the almost 690 million who were already in hunger in 2019, an increase motivated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2019, after a downward revision of China's figures, almost 690 million people were undernourished (8.9% of the world's population), 10 million more than in 2018.

Asia had the highest number of hungry people (381 million), followed by Africa (250 million) and Latin America and the Caribbean (48 million).

The number of hungry or undernourished people was over 1 billion in the early 1990s and fell to 784 million in 2014 and 2015.

However, the downward trend was reversed, and the number increased to 821 million in 2018. The numbers continue to fall in Asia but rise in Latin America and the Caribbean and in sub-Saharan Africa.

World Food Day was established in 1981 and for this year 2020, the October 16 is celebrated by more than 150 countries and took place under the theme: Grow, Nourish, Sustain, Together.

This is an important date, which also marks the creation of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and to raise public awareness on nutrition and food issues.