Food Security

Data M web , created by the European Commission- Joint Research Centre, Institute of Perspective Technological Studies (Seville, Spain) thorough work with the PROGNOZ software company, provides an easy mechanism to visualize multiple datasets related to food security and nutrition.  Data M stands for Data on Agriculture, Trade, and Models, and the online data repository allows visualization in a number of ways, pulling data from a number of International Organizations (e, g., FAO and World Bank) and other relevant sources .

Over the past decade, Ethiopia’s agricultural productivity has exploded, particularly for cereal crops. This expansion in agriculture has led to impressive economic growth, but it’s unclear exactly what is behind the advance in productivity. Additionally, Ethiopian agriculture relies heavily on smallholder farmers, and some researchers are concerned that the recent growth may not be sustainable on the country’s increasingly small landholdings.

Seasonal agricultural changes can impact rural households’ diets and income, affecting their long-term health and welfare. Changes in diet quality are of particular concern, as diets lower in nutritional diversity have been shown to increase the risk of chronic undernutrition, micronutrient deficiency, and cancer and cardiovascular disease.

This blog was originally posted on IFPRI.org. It was written by Kelly Jones and Vivian Hoffmann from IFPRI’s Markets, Trade, and Institutions Division as part of an ongoing series of researcher-authored blog stories highlighting research in progress at IFPRI.

Aflatoxin, a toxin produced by the Aspergillus fungus, poses a serious health threat in developing countries. The toxin grows in a number of staple crops worldwide, such as maize, and chronic exposure can lead to liver disease, cancer, and even death. While proper testing and processing of crops can reduce aflatoxin levels in finished food products like maize flour, many developing countries lack the regulatory environment needed to enforce such testing and handling requirements.