Introduction to public policy and food security

With less than a decade to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) by 2030, food insecurity, hunger and malnutrition continue to threaten far too many lives worldwide. The world hoped that the rate of hunger and undernourishment would decrease after the severe and unprecedented shock of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, ongoing economic downturns (made worse by the pandemic), climatic shocks causing havoc with food production and supply, the ongoing conflict in many regions and, more recently, the war in Ukraine have led to an increase in the number of hungry and malnourished people. The prospects for the future do not look good. Addressing the challenge of food insecurity is key to meeting the goals of SDGs. Yet the technological, institutional, governance, capacity and policy solutions for achieving global, national, local, household, and individual food security require local actions beyond single disciplines. Therefore, bringing the issues, challenges and constraints in achieving food security to the forefront of professionals at all levels (including students, policy analysts, policy advisors and policymakers) will require a comprehensive compendium of various indicators and causal factors contributing to food security. We trust this Handbook will provide a sound resource for training the next cadre of food security professionals and policymakers. We hope to equip analysts and policymakers to deal with the complexities of public policy and food security and guide multidisciplinary teams in the analysis required for evidence policymaking to achieve the SDGs in a way that supports the substantial reduction of food security, hunger and nutrition.