By 2030, we should all be eating safely, sufficiently and nutritiously, all year round, no matter where in the world we live.
That is the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG2), and it is an achievable and exciting one. We really are in a position to end hunger and malnutrition for the first time in human history. But the statistics show the current food system is not working. Malnutrition – caused by too much food, not enough food, or too few micronutrients – is endemic.
Every country of the world has a severe malnutrition problem. Yields per acre have plateaued across the developed world, soil fertility is declining, and climate change is affecting all production systems. And by 2030, forecasts are that there will be an extra 1.5 billion people worldwide.
Food touches all areas of our lives. To reach SDG2, we need to take into account the environment, society, and livelihoods, as well as farming, trade and health. Ripple Effect’s holistic approach to international development does just that.
We work in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in four people goes hungry. The subsistence farmers we support are generally malnourished and food insecure. Yet by the end of our projects, they are giving their families healthy diets, trading surplus produce, and protecting the land for future generations.
Our Food Report shows how Ripple Effect helps smallholder farmers in Africa grow, eat and trade healthily. It illustrates how our underlying principles could be applied more globally, to rebalance our food system for the benefit of people and the environment. We believe that today’s children can be tomorrow’s healthy adults – wherever they live.
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