End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
The number of undernourished people has dropped by almost half in the past two decades because of rapid economic growth and increased agricultural productivity. Many developing countries that used to suffer from famine and hunger can now meet their nutritional needs. Central and East Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean have all made huge progress in eradicating extreme hunger.
Unfortunately, extreme hunger and malnutrition remain a huge barrier to development in many countries. There are 821 million people estimated to be chronically undernourished as of 2017, often as a direct consequence of environmental degradation, drought and biodiversity loss. Over 90 million children under five are dangerously underweight. Undernourishment and severe food insecurity appear to be increasing in almost all regions of Africa, as well as in South America.
The SDGs aim to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition by 2030, making sure all people–especially children–have sufficient and nutritious food all year. This involves promoting sustainable agricultural, supporting small-scale farmers and equal access to land, technology and markets. It also requires international cooperation to ensure investment in infrastructure and technology to improve agricultural productivity.
Food production exceeds global demand by 20% and yet we can’t feed the world’s population with 1.3 billion tons of food wasted or lost every year in the supply chain.
With sensors and actuators we can monitor and control the climate of containers on ships and trains as well as cargo in trucks to reduce spoilage.
Smart gas sensors monitor bacteria and gases to tell us if food is spoiled or contaminated so we can maximize food shelf life.