Ireland should look to its history and take a lead role on food security issues
IRELAND needs to look back to its own Great Famine and take the lead to help countries suffering from dangerous levels of food insecurity, says Sophie Healy-Thow. She says that while the Irish government is a big donor as a whole to charitable organisations, it should be doing more to help regions that are food insecure.
“The Irish Government doesn’t do enough to help countries. It rarely makes big statements on any issue and I think it’s time it should,” she says.
“We should take the lead on food security. If we look back on our own history, the Great Famine was a time of immense food insecurity for Irish people. We as a nation have experienced a food crisis and therefore we have a moral obligation to help people who are now suffering just like we did.”
Sophie explains that by 2050 there will statistically not be enough food to feed the world’s population and that it is everyone’s business to step up to this challenge.
“Food insecurity is a huge challenge which many people and organisations are trying to tackle. Small scale businesses and projects are popping up with the aim of reducing food insecurity, helping in the distribution of crops to the market, equal pay for farmers for their crops, education about crop rotation and the importance of agriculture, eating smaller portion sizes and being consumer aware when purchasing food,” she says.
“These will all help in becoming food secure, but only if people are willing to understand that they have a part to play, however big or small in the area of food security and agriculture.
“If we want to secure the future we need to be food secure. It’s a simple message but it can change the world.
She adds that we also need to stop viewing food security as a ‘Third World’ issue as it impacts all the food chain.
“Everyone has a role to play to create a food secure world. Many people don’t understand what it means or think it’s just a Third World issue when it’s something that affects us all. It impacts on climate change. We all need to be aware of its impact and I want to get the message out.”