This policy, developed by UNAIDS in collaboration with the World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO), provides guidance for governments, civil society and other partners on how to address food and nutrition concerns in the context of HIV, keeping in mind the commitment made by all UN member states through the Millennium Development Goals both to reduce chronic hunger and halt and reverse the spread of HIV by 2015.

This brief gives an update of the food security situation in several Asian countries.

The complex causes of the current food and agriculture crisis require a comprehensive response.
In view of the urgency of assisting people and countries in need, the first set of policy actions—
an emergency package—consists of steps that can yield immediate impact:
1. expand emergency responses and humanitarian assistance to food-insecure people and
people threatening government legitimacy,
2. eliminate agricultural export bans and export restrictions,
3. undertake fast-impact food pr more...

Humanitarian news and analysis on Food Security. Sponosred by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

'With the detrimental social and environmental changes occurring in the developing world, a revolution in biotechnology and associated information technology is improving the health, well-being, and lifestyle of the privileged and creating more wealth in a few rich countries. Can this revolution also be harnessed to serve the food and nutrition needs of the world's poor? What are the opportunities, problems, and risks involved with the new technologies and can they be managed?'

Source: IFPRI, more...

This paper addresses the opportunities, challenges and risks related to the development of bio-fuels in the Sahel and West Africa where problems of food security and purchasing power are most keenly felt. After covering the facts and debate surrounding green fuel, this paper presents the national and regional policies and strategies regarding food and land issues. A Code of Good Conduct setting out the conditions for a “Green Fuel for Development” label could reconcile West Africa’s trade more...

'Some consumers and environmentalists espouse purchasing food that is produced locally or nationally. An appealing expression of this is the 'food miles' concept, which reflects the aim of minimizing the distance food has traveled before reaching the consumer. The concept of food miles is flawed because it ignores the costs of production, the mode and scale of transport, and the importance of other inputs such as capital and labor. Nonetheless, the notion has become popular recently with the ris more...

This article argues that the financial crisis provides an opportunity for world leaders to review their political performance. They can continue to rely on a 'self-regulating' market, which caused the crisis. Or they can put forward a new agenda for food security and redistribution of the world’s resources. Source: Share The World’s Resources.

Some world leaders argue that the WTO Doha Round will solve the global food crisis. But, this Institute for Agricultural and Trade Policy (IATP) article says increased trade liberalization will reinforce poorer countries’ dependence on food imports. Further, deregulation policies will increase the power of transnational agribusinesses at the expense of local farmers. Instead, the IATP argues, world leaders should reform the rules governing international trade to control the market power exerte more...

Summary: 'The dramatic rise and volatility of food prices over the last year have shaken the global food system. Governments and the international development community generally have responded to various aspects of the food crisis, but questions remain about whether the right actions are being pursued, how best to respond, and what the future holds. The three essays here by Namanga Ngongi, president of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Josette Sheeran, executive director of the Wo more...