JenniferClappaWilliam G.MoseleybBarbaraBurlingamecPaolaTermined
Highlights
Understandings of food security have continually evolved over time and it is time for an update.
Agency and sustainability should be formally recognized as dimensions of food security in food policy frameworks.
Agency refers to the capacity of individuals and groups to exercise voice and make decisions about their food systems.
Sustainability refers to the long-term viability of the ecological and social bases of food systems.
Implications for the measurement of food security are considered.
Abstract
The definition of food security has evolved and changed over the past 50 years, including the introduction of the four commonly cited pillars of food security: availability, access, utilization, and stability, which have been important in shaping policy. In this article, we make the case that it is time for a formal update to our definition of food security to include two additional dimensions proposed by the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition: agency and sustainability. We show that the impact of widening food system inequalities and growing awareness of the intricate connections between ecological systems and food systems highlight the importance of these additional dimensions to the concept. We further outline the ways in which international policy guidance on the right to food already implies both agency and sustainability alongside the more established four pillars, making it a logical next step to adopt a six dimensional framework for food security in both policy and scholarly settings. We also show that advances have already been made with respect to providing measurements of agency and sustainability as they relate to food insecurity.
