accessibility & help

Food insecurity

Why are 925 million people living in hunger today, despite there being enough food in the world? There are many reasons, which together add up to: food insecurity.

Hunger and malnutrition kill more people than tuberculosis, AIDS and malaria combined, and are the world’s biggest health risks. Yet one-third of the UK population has never heard of food insecurity.

People are food insecure when they are unable to get enough nutritious food. The reasons behind it are complex and varied – poverty, drought, floods, natural disasters, conflict and inflation are all factors.

The Red Cross is tackling hunger and food insecurity by helping people protect their health, their homes and means of earning a living when times get tough.

Our Seeds of Change campaign, which ran throughout October 2011, explained what food insecurity is, the issues behind it, and what can be done to help break the cycle of poverty and hunger.

View this video on YouTube

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How we are helping people access food

Hadjatou cradles her six-month-old son after learning from a Red Cross nurse that her baby is acutely malnourished.

With the current food crisis in the Sahel, Habi’s family is facing a daunting task to protect the health of their precious young.

Usually Sorhow's family grows enough millet and sorghum to feed themselves, but inadequate rainfall caused their last harvest to fail.

Alwilayat has already lost two daughters under the age of five and is facing a daunting struggle to feed her two sons.

As Ouilimatou lies, listless, in his grandmother’s lap he does not look like a child who is nearly two years old.

"In 12 years volunteering for the Red Cross I have never seen a catastrophe like the current food crisis here in the Sahel region of Mali."

Blog: livelihoods in Bangladesh

Farmer in Bangladesh smiles at one of his ducks

See how we are helping cyclone survivors in Bangladesh strengthen their livelihoods to protect their food sources.

Read about Bangladesh  >

Blog: Mobile technology fights hunger in Africa

Animals at the Garissa animal market in Kenya

How can technology be used to fight food insecurity in a region as large and diverse as east Africa?

More on our blog  >

Blog: strengthening livelihoods in Haiti

Man receiving aid in Haiti

Read about how we're working with earthquake survivors to break the cycle of poverty and hunger in Haiti.

More on our blog  >

Blog: recovery is not enough for east Africa

Aden with fruit, Kenya

We need to fund and implement long-term projects that give people hope that the future will be better.

More on our blog  >

Related

Latest food news

The British Red Cross has closed its appeal, but the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement continues to help in the region.

The British Red Cross has given £200,000 from its Disaster Fund to help provide vital aid to people in Mali.

Food blogs

A young girl eats nutrient-rich porridge in Kenya

Get behind the scenes of our food security programmes.´

Read our blogs  >

For teachers

A lively, structured lesson on the realities of access to food with intriguing photos and video.

A look at food insecurity and hunger, its causes and the ways people cope.

More teaching resources  >