Definition and consequences of hidden hunger
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) defines hidden hunger as
“the micronutrient deficiencies, that occur when the quality of food that people eat does not meet their nutrient requirements, so they are not getting the essential vitamins and minerals they need for their growth and development”
.
Hidden hunger affects more than two billion people and can result in disruption of the normal functioning of their immune systems, stunted physical and intellectual growth and even death.
It is possible that hunger is not synonymous with starvation, but with a lack of calories due to a lack of essential micronutrients.
Here, the triple burden of malnutrition plays a very important role:
- Malnutrition: not getting enough of the food your body demands.
- Overweight and obese: Usually caused by the consumption of low-nutrient, high-calorie foods.
- Micronutrient deficiency: 3 billion people are undernourished due to a lack of nutritious food.
Crop nutrition
The equation is linked to crop nutrition.
Although the improvement has been noticeable in recent seasons, it is not always consistent in terms of grain quality.
Food insecurity is not a chronic situation, but is linked to the low quality of food due to a lack of essential nutrients in its composition.
It is a phenomenon known as hidden hunger and affects 2,000 million people”.
The current challenge for agriculture is to manage crop nutrition within a context of soil deficiency and thus improve the quality of production.
We need to monitor strategies to increase the nutritional value of the food produced.
In several verified studies, deficiencies in micronutrients, such as zinc, selenium and manganese, have been shown to act on a person’s immune system.
“In addition to being a health problem, it also has an economic impact with an average implication of 5% of the world’s GDP”.
Dr. Ismail Cakmak
A summary of Dr. Ismail’s words is: “Production systems are focused on yield, without paying attention to the nutritional value of what is produced”, i.e. quality does not matter, but quantity does.
He also pointed out that increasing yields decreases protein content and that there has been no success in trying to reduce hidden hunger, because solutions based on adequate fertilization were not included.
Progress has to be made to improve the quality of crops with adequate fertilization, which leads to an improvement in the quality of food consumed.
Clearly, the economic effects of hidden hunger on global GDP are many, but what should be the goals of agricultural production?
- Produce foods with specific basic compositions.
- Maximise crop production efficiency and monitor nutrient dilution as yields increase.
- Apply a balanced and strategic fertilization management that helps to safeguard quality.
- Do not neglect the effective incorporation of nutrients, through proper fertilizer management, during food production.
We cannot overlook progress in improving crop quality through proper fertilization.
It is therefore our responsibility as a Group to take a leading role in providing the agricultural sector with different nutritional alternatives and solutions to try to reduce the hidden hunger that is affecting so many millions of people.
