Food Security Public Forum
University of Queensland and the Global Change Institute
When: Tuesday 28th September 5:30pm – 8:00pm
Where: The Long Room Customs House 399 Queen Street Brisbane QLD 4001
Speakers include:
Annie Shattuck
Policy analyst Food First USA
David Crombie
President National Farmers’ Federation Australia
Malcolm Duthie
Country Director United Nations World Food Programme Gambia
Julian Cribb
Science communicator and author Julian Cribb and Associates Australia
Speakers will be followed by Q&A discussion from the floor
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Currently over one billion people worldwide are chronically hungry. Paradoxically an additional one billion are overweight – a significant problem in itself. In terms of volume there is sufficient food to feed the 6.8 billion people on the planet.
The problem is that food is not evenly distributed – and for obvious reasons. The majority of the world’s poor live in developing countries and do not have the purchasing power to buy from the global food marketplace.
By 2050 Australia is predicted to have a population of some 35 million. With domestic food provision a priority the nation might not have the ability to send increasing volumes of food abroad. Yet globally there will be over 9 billion people to feed – requiring an additional 50-100% increase in current food production.
Given the current and likely effects of climate change water shortages reduced availability of arable land and the diversion of food crops to biofuels biochemicals and bioenergy it is not surprising that food security is firmly back on national and international agendas.
The Global Change Institute’s Food Security Public Forum is designed to present and discuss these challenges facing us into the future. The Forum aims to discuss and identify ways to achieve a major alleviation of global hunger both now and into the future.