Food Security: Understanding the Challenges and Pathways to Global Improvement
Food security is a growing global concern affecting nearly a billion people worldwide. Having enough food is just the start. The next step is ensuring everyone has regular, fair access to safe and nutritious meals.
This issue touches four major areas: availability, access, utilization, and stability. Each is important for ensuring people can eat well, stay healthy, and live with dignity.
The good news? There are real, scalable solutions. Vertical farming (and Eden Green’s technology in particular) shows how we can grow food more efficiently, closer to where it’s needed most. These systems can reshape what food security might look like in the future.
Current evidence shows that despite advances in farming and food production, the number of hungry people is growing. It rose to over 820 million in 2018 and could still affect 670 million people by 2030.
What Is Food Security?
When people ask about food security, they often think only about having enough food to go around. But today, the definition goes far beyond that.
Food security means that all people, at all times, have both economic and physical access to enough safe, nutritious food to reinforce an active, healthy life. This modern view was first defined at the 1996 World Food Summit.
Growing more crops may sound like an easy fix, but we must also make food affordable and nutritious. Most importantly, we must ensure people can rely on getting it even during hard times.
Since 2014, hunger has been rising again. To reverse this trend, we need strategic, scalable solutions. That’s where innovations like vertical farming and system-wide planning come in.
The Four Pillars of Food Security
Food security depends on four main factors: availability, access, utilization, and stability. When one of these breaks down, people can go hungry, even if there’s plenty of food somewhere else.
Availability
Availability means having enough food produced to meet people’s needs. The global population is growing, and farmland is becoming harder to find. As a result, producing enough food is difficult, especially in cities with limited space.
That’s where vertical farming can change things. Growing crops in stacked layers can significantly increase food production.
This high yield in a small space can bring food to crowded urban areas and communities that need it most.
Access
Access goes beyond having food available to ensuring people can get it. For many people, long distances, high prices, and poor transportation make it hard to find or afford fresh food.
In the U.S., leafy greens often travel 1,500 to 2,500 miles to reach store shelves. Along the way, they can lose up to half their nutritional value.
Regional growing options, like vertical farms in or near cities, help solve this. They shorten the supply chain, lower costs, and make high-quality produce easier for everyone to reach.
Utilization
Utilization is how well our bodies use the food we eat. It’s not enough to have food; it needs to be safe, clean, and packed with nutrients. Good sanitation, healthcare, and food safety all play a part.
Crops rich in vitamins and minerals help people stay healthy, especially with clean water and basic nutrition education.
Stability
Stability means having steady access to food, not just today, but every day. We need to ensure people aren’t at risk of going hungry when something unexpected happens.
War, economic crashes, and extreme weather can quickly disrupt food supplies. That’s why long-term planning, strong infrastructure, and nearby food systems are so important. They help communities bounce back and keep food on the table even in a crisis.
What’s Threatening Global Food Security?
Even with all the food we grow, millions still struggle to eat well. That’s because food security factors in supply and the risks that break the system.
From climate disasters to conflict and rising prices, these threats make it harder for people to get the food they need, when they need it.
Related article: What is Food Insecurity? Examining Food Scarcity
Want to understand the difference between food security and food insecurity? This article explores why some communities face scarcity even when food is available elsewhere, and how local solutions can help.
Climate Change and Weather Extremes
Weather has always affected farming, but climate change is making it worse. Floods wash away crops. Droughts dry out the soil. Sudden heatwaves can wipe out entire harvests in just days.
In 2022, for example, a major heatwave in Europe caused lettuce yields to drop by 40% in open fields. Extreme events are becoming more common and harder to predict.
Conflict and Political Instability
Growing and delivering food becomes much harder during times of war or political unrest. Farms may be damaged, roads can shut down, and markets often close, leading to food shortages and rising hunger.
Many people have to leave their homes during conflicts, creating refugee camps where food is often limited. In some areas, this can even lead to famine.
Economic Inequality and Supply Chain Failures
Not everyone can afford healthy food even when it’s available. Rising costs, inflation, and low wages make it hard for many families to buy what they need. In some areas, stores don’t even carry fresh produce. These places are called food deserts.
The problem isn’t always a lack of food. It’s how that food is priced and where it’s sent. Some communities get plenty, while others are left out.
Food Waste and Resource Misuse
Each year, we waste about 1.3 billion tons of food worldwide. That’s one-third of all the food we grow. It’s a huge problem, especially when so many people still go hungry.
In developing countries, food is often lost early, during harvest or transport. In wealthier places, most waste happens in stores and homes.
Related article: How We Are Reducing Food Loss and Waste
Learn how Eden Green is cutting waste with strategic farming methods and how these changes benefit both people and the planet.
Solutions to Close the Gaps
Fixing food security takes more than one answer. It means rethinking how we grow, share, and protect our food. New approaches like vertical farming technology are helping communities grow while using fewer resources and feeding more people.
Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Community-Based Interventions
Nutrition-sensitive agriculture focuses on growing healthy and fulfilling food. The focus is on improving diets by growing a wider variety of crops and teaching better ways to prepare and use them.
In many places, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, farmers are learning through workshops. These programs show how to care for soil, rotate crops, and control pests naturally. These simple tools help improve nutrition and cut down on hunger.
When communities help shape these projects, they work better. Community ownership creates knowledge and trust, making the changes more likely to last.
Social Protection Programs and School Feeding
When families face hard times, social protection programs can help keep food on the table. Cash transfers and food vouchers give people the money or resources they need to buy meals, especially during job loss or disasters.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, studies show that regular, predictable aid can reduce food insecurity and improve diets. In the U.S., USDA school meal programs provide millions of children with daily nutrition, helping them stay healthy and ready to learn.
These programs are a safety net that protects the most vulnerable when the economy falters.
Food Waste Reduction and Infrastructure Resilience
A lot of food is lost after harvest, especially in places without good storage or transport. Weak roads, limited electricity, and a lack of cold storage make it hard to keep food fresh before it reaches people.
Better infrastructure can change that. Tools like hermetic storage (sealed bags or bins that keep out air and moisture) can cut post-harvest losses by up to 98% in developing countries. Cold chains, drip irrigation, and food hubs also help protect harvests and stretch supplies during tough times.
These improvements reduce waste and make food systems stronger in the face of disasters and climate change.
How Vertical Farming Can Strengthen Global Food Systems
Vertical farming supports all four pillars of food security. It grows nutrient-rich food where needed most quickly, safely, and with fewer resources. Our greenhouses are helping communities grow stronger, one harvest at a time.
Increasing Availability with Year-Round Production
Traditional farms depend on seasons, meaning they can only grow certain crops a few times a year. Vertical farming changes that. Growers can use indoor systems with controlled lighting, temperature, and nutrients. This way, they can harvest crops like lettuce and herbs 12 to 15 times a year. Normally, they only harvest two or three times.
Stacked growing layers also mean more food per square foot. These systems can produce 10 to 20 times more than open fields, with some setups reaching up to 100 times more in ideal conditions.
Increasing Access by Growing Closer to Communities
Food accessibility means making sure people can get healthy food nearby. Many neighborhoods in cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Johannesburg are food deserts.
Vertical farms grow food close to where people live, cutting transportation costs by 25 to 40% and helping to keep prices lower. It also means the food is fresher and holds more nutrients.
Improving Utilization Through Cleaner, Safer Food
In vertical farms, plants grow in clean spaces without soil. This setup uses fewer pesticides and lowers the risk of dangerous bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella, cutting that risk by up to 90%.
These farms also recycle water and give each plant the exact nutrients it needs. That means food grows more evenly and stays fresh longer after harvest.
System Stability in Times of Crisis
When disasters like hurricanes, wars, or pandemics strike, food systems often break down. But vertical farms can keep growing. They’re built indoors and protected from storms, pests, and power loss.
During Hurricane Ian in 2022, outdoor farms in Florida lost up to 90% of their tomato and lettuce crops. Vertical farms, by contrast, kept 98% of their food growing strong.
This stability gives growers more control and keeps shelves stocked even when the world seems unpredictable.
The Eden Green Solution: Local Food, Global Impact
At Eden Green, we believe food security starts with thoughtful, community-first solutions. Our vertical greenhouses are built to grow clean, high-quality produce right where it's needed, year-round and without waste.
By rethinking how food is grown and shared, we’re creating a more stable, fair, and healthy future for everyone.
Rethinking Availability: Vertical Farming at Scale
Eden Green’s vertical farms are built to grow a lot of food, fast. Using a modular greenhouse design, we can scale up production to meet needs while keeping quality high.
Our greens go from harvest to store in just 48 hours, staying fresh longer and cutting waste. Each greenhouse grows a wide range of crops year-round.
We also offer private-label options, so retail partners can customize their produce packaging and branding.
Making Fresh Produce Accessible to Underserved Markets
Eden Green teams up with nonprofits to bring locally-grown greens to communities with limited options both in big cities and rural towns.
A Sustainable, Resource-Efficient Model
Eden Green’s farms use far less water and energy than traditional farms. Our hydroponic systems recycle up to 95% of the water they use. By comparison, regular farms lose 50 to 70% of water through runoff and evaporation.
We’re also working to add solar power and other clean energy to reduce emissions. Because our farms grow food locally, we cut down on long-distance trucking and the pollution it causes.
This resource-saving model can protect the planet while feeding more people.
Related article: What Is Food Sustainability and Why Is It Important?
Dig deeper into how sustainable farming protects our food supply and the environment at the same time.
How Eden Green Builds Resilient Food Systems
Eden Green’s farms support all parts of food security. We grow more food, help more people reach it, keep it fresh and safe, and grow all year, even in hard times.
Our greenhouses use advanced tools to watch over plants and help them grow better. They can also keep running during storms or other major issues.
Because our farms are easy to build in more places, we can grow as need grows, bringing food to more communities over time.
Building a Food-Secure Future Together
Food security means making sure everyone has access to safe, healthy food every day. While hunger is still a major problem, we have ways to fix it. Vertical farming lets us grow more with less. Local farms bring high-quality food to more people. Cleaner growing methods help keep us healthy. And strong systems keep food moving even during a crisis.
If you’re in food retail or food service, now is the time to be part of the solution. Partner with Eden Green to bring more sustainable produce to your shelves or kitchen and help build a stronger food system for all.
FAQs
What are the key indicators of food security?
Key indicators of food security generally fall into four main pillars: availability, access, utilization, and stability. Each pillar has specific metrics and indicators used to assess levels of food security.
How does food security affect health?
When people don’t get enough safe, nutritious food, it can lead to sickness, stunted growth, and long-term health problems.
