Sufficient and adequate food is a human right. But some 800 million people are still chronically undernourished. The SDC is working at various levels to ensure that every person in the world has access to sufficient and adequate food. 

The SDC's focus

The SDC aims to achieve sustainable food security for all. It promotes food systems that guarantee access to adequate food even for the poorest and most vulnerable population sectors.

Direct food aid deliveries still play an important role during acute food crises. But the SDC is increasingly supporting projects that aim to ensure balanced diets during food crises  to enable people to weather crises without food aid.

The SDC recognises the important role played by women in food production and nutrition, and is working to ensure that they have access to resources and education.

In addition, the SDC is active in the following areas:

• Right to food The SDC supported the 2004 Voluntary Guidelines to Support the Progressive Realisation of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security, participated in the drafting process, and is working to ensure their implementation. Various countries have subsequently adjusted their policies, legislation and institutions accordingly. The SDC is also working to ensure that civil society organisations and other stakeholders monitor compliance with the right to adequate food and tell governments where there is potential for improvement.
• Balanced nutrition The SDC is working to ensure that in addition to staple foods, people also have access to a varied diet. It supports diversified agricultural production and food systems. Education, access to safe drinking water, healthcare and proper processing and storage of food also play an important role.
• Crop forecasting and insurance The SDC supports modern crop forecasting technology such as satellite data and remote sensing. Crop forecasts facilitate the early detection of food crises and timely intervention. Such forecasts are also important in developing micro-insurance products for smallholder farmers, for example to insure them against flooding and drought. 

Background

Hunger and malnutrition are major challenges. According to "The State of Food Insecurity in the World", a report published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, about 805 million people were estimated to be chronically undernourished in 2012–14. During the first 1,000 days of an infant's life in particular, sufficient and nutritious food is especially important, otherwise the child can suffer permanent damage.

Over 200 million children under age five are affected by chronic or acute malnutrition and more than two billion people are suffering from vitamin or mineral deficiency. To counter this problem, food can be enriched with micronutrients, but a sounder approach would be to promote diversified agricultural production that provides access to a wider range of foods.

The right to adequate food is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR, 1976) made this this right legally binding. In Switzerland, the ICESCR came into force in 1992.