How to feed a hungry world

The debate about organic food overlooks the challenge of global undernourishment

Love it or hate it, organic food continues to inspire healthy and passionate discussion around the world. After a 2014 study surveying the health benefits of organically produced foods found it was “high in antioxidants and lower in toxic metals and pesticides”, many nutritionists and scientists questioned the methodology of the research. Other research conducted in the United Kingdom has found that there is actually no difference in the nutritional content of organically produced and non-organic food.

Organic food is a big business. According to the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, the market for organic food globally stands at $72 billion (Dh 264bn) and it is growing every year. In the UAE, the market for food that has been produced without chemical pesticide and genetic modification has been steadily growing through popular farmers’ markets and speciality areas in supermarkets.

The bigger question in this debate is not about the health of produce, but our collective willingness to indulge in organic food while millions around the world continue to go hungry. While some have the luxury of choosing to purchase produce and adhere to fad diets, millions are starving. To solve the problem of global hunger, we need mass production of food staples, and realistically that requires genetic modification of crops and the use of chemical pesticides. Studies that suggest that food produced in this way has the same nutritional value of food that is produced without chemical pesticides provide evidence that technology can help end world hunger. Given the increased risk of crop damage with food produced organically and without pesticides or chemical fertilisers, we must adhere to the food systems currently in place.

Ultimately, eating locally produced items is one of the best decisions individual consumers can make at the supermarket. But as a society and an international community, we must devote our collective resources to solving the problem of hunger before turning our attention to designer vegetables that offer perceived health benefits for a high price. We all have a role in making sure that no one goes hungry.