Global Food Insecurity

UNICEF's 2024 Global Report on Food Crises reveals that nearly 282 million people in 59 countries and territories experienced high levels of acute hunger in 2023, an increase of 24 million from 2022. This crisis disproportionately affects developing nations more than industrialized ones. Food demand is projected to rise by approximately 60 percent by 2050, exacerbating the situation.

In regions like the U.S. and Europe, the crisis manifests mainly as unequal access to nutritious, high-quality food, particularly impacting the economically disadvantaged. Additionally, climate-related disturbances to crop production are becoming more frequent, and the U.S. is rapidly losing valuable farmland to expanding urban development. Planners should recognize how socioeconomic disparities in communities, coupled with climate change and loss of farmland, can exacerbate these issues.