In today’s society, there are more than one billion people suffering from hunger. This number has certainly increased from past decades. This article by Stephen J. Scanlan, J. Craig Jenkins and Lindsey Peterson stands against the typical assumption that hunger around the world is a direct outcome of food scarcity. Instead, these writers heavily believe in the fact that food in society is far from evenly distributed. As a result, many individuals in less fortunate countries have trouble accessing this food supply. Contrary to popular belief, the amount of food made available to society has actually increased over the years. Yet, many countries still do not receive equal access to this food as others. “The U.N. World Food Programme notes that in developing countries, the poorest citizens spend upwards of 60 percent of their income on food. By way of contrast, according to a New York Times editorial the poorest Americans only spend between 15 percent and 20 percent on food” (Scarcity Fallacy).
Another aspect this article covers in detail is to highlight the idea that poverty is not the only factor leading individuals to hunger. Gender and ethnicity play just as much, if not more, of a role as poverty. “Scarcity Fallacy” shares with the reader that a shocking 60 percent of those impacted with hunger are women. On top of that, women constitute for more than 80 percent of the world’s agricultural labor.
Personally, I almost feel guilty of the amount of food I waste and consume after reading this article. Though I am well aware that hunger is definitely evident around the world, I never realized the inequality and mass amounts of people affected by this famine. I, as I’m sure many would agree, immediately assumed the scarcity of food was the reasoning for hunger. Now, I am conscious that this is not the case. Though there are many evident organizations focused on helping this world hunger, corruption is certainly involved. For starters, I personally will, without a doubt, think twice before wasting the plentiful food I am fortunate to be provided with. I am now very interested to keep an eye out for how this famine will be approached in the future compared to current and past trends of aid.
· What are your thoughts on the idea of corruption regarding world hunger?
· How do you think society should go about decreasing famine?
· What factor – poverty, gender, or ethnicity – do you believe has the largest impact on the people suffering from hunger?
In response to your last question, I think that all three - poverty, gender, and ethnicity - contribute greatly to world hunger. However, I think that poverty has the greatest impact. If one cannot afford food, no matter what gender or ethnicity he/she is, he/she will not be able to eat.
ReplyDeleteI also think poverty has the greatest impact on world hunger. There is enough food to feed everyone on the planet, and the main reason people in developing countries aren't getting any is because they have very little money to support themselves and their families.
ReplyDelete