Feeding resilience: Unravelling the Asia-Pacific food crisis

This report explores the impact of the global food crisis in the Asia-Pacific region, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent deteriorations due to the Russia–Ukraine war and the ongoing climate crisis. These events have severely affected food security, and vulnerable populations have been particularly impacted. The pandemic disrupted global supply chains and the war in Ukraine intensified the crisis by destabilising global food systems. In addition, climate change has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, placing further strain on those food systems. Due to its reliance on food imports, vulnerability to climate events, and rapid urbanisation, the Asia-Pacific region has been heavily impacted and faces unique challenges.

The report focuses on how six countries - Bangladesh, the Philippines, Pakistan, Lao PDR, Sri Lanka, and the Kyrgyz Republic - have experienced severe food insecurity since 2020, with an estimated 41.5 million people becoming food insecure. Through a scoping review of existing evidence, using a conceptual model to examine the impact of the crisis on diets, nutrition, and resilience, an urban food vendors survey, and the creation of resilience snapshots, the following key findings were determined.

Firstly, domestic food production declined across all countries due to disruptions in agricultural inputs and extreme weather events. There was significant inflation of food prices due to increased cost of food imports and falling domestic food production. Secondly, many households spent more of their budgets on food as the cost of diets rose. However, due to reduced income and high food prices, there was lower dietary diversity and quality, with people consuming more processed foods and fewer fruits and vegetables. The use of food- and livelihood-based coping strategies also rose in all six countries. Thirdly, the crisis disproportionately affected women and children, leading to reduced dietary diversity and a risk of worsening nutritional outcomes. The report highlights a shift toward cheaper and less nutritious foods, which could have long-term health implications. Fourthly, a survey of food vendors revealed significant challenges, including reduced access to customers, supply chain disruptions, and decreased income.

The report provides resilience snapshots for each country, detailing how different factors (such as reliance on imports or climate vulnerability) have impacted their food systems. For instance, Bangladesh’s reliance on rice production made it vulnerable to supply disruptions, the 2022 Pakistan floods devastated domestic food production, and in Sri Lanka a catastrophic fertiliser ban in 2021 led to a sharp decline in food production.

The recommendations to build resilience against future shocks include promoting local supply chain resilience to reduce reliance on food imports, building climate resilience in food systems, expanding social safety nets for vulnerable populations like women and children, promoting healthy diets across food systems, and supporting urban food vendors to mitigate market and supply chain disruptions. In conclusion, the Asia-Pacific food crisis highlights the need for coordinated efforts to strengthen food systems in the face of ongoing and future crises, with a particular focus on supporting vulnerable populations in the region.