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FAO’s author.
Text:
Anne W. Kepple
ColaboraTORS:
Alan Bojanic
Alexander Cambraia Nascimento Vaz
Alexandro Rodrigues Pinto
Ana Carolina Feldenheimer Silva
Ana Paula Bortoletto Martins
Ana Maria Segall Corrêa
Arnoldo Anacleto de Campos
Caio Galvão França
Carmem Priscila Bocchi
Cássia Amaral Buon
Carlo Cafiero
Carlos Augusto Monteiro
Débora Bosco Silva
Denise Direito
Eduardo Augusto Fernandes
Elizabetta Recine
Fernando Gaiger
Francisca de Fátima de Araújo Lucena
Gustavo Chianca
Juliane Helriguel de Melo Perini
Leonor Pacheco
Luciana Monteiro Vasconcelos Sardinha
Luisete Moraes Bandeira
Mariana Danelon
Marília Leão
Mauro Eduardo Del Grossi
Michele Lessa de Oliveira
Paulo de Martino Jannuzzi
Patrícia Chaves Gentil
Patrícia Constante Jaime
Renato Maluf
Ricardo França
Rosane Nascimento
Graphic Design:
Katia Ozorio
Tarcísio Silva
publishing :
Tarcísio Silva
THE STATE OF FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY IN BRAZIL
A Multi-dimensional Portrait
2014 REPORT
BRASÍLIA
THE STATE OF FOOD
AND NUTRITION
AUGUST,
2014 SECURITY IN BRAZIL
A Multi-dimensional Portrait
3
PRESENTATION
Annually, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
makes a thorough study of the situation of food security in the world. The publication The State of Food Insecurity in the World (SOFI) measures progress of
nations in the quest to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger.
FAO estimates can provide guidance to those responsible for the formulation of
public policies, and the development and implementation of effective measures
to fight food insecurity and malnutrition.
The dimensions of food security - availability, access, utilization and stability – are
best understood when presented by a set of indicators.
In the recently published edition of SOFI, FAO estimates that 805 million people
in the world suffer from hunger. That means that daily they do not eat enough to
lead an active and healthy life.
It is worth highlighting that many countries have adopted policies to change this
picture. Brazil is one of them. In recent years the Brazilian programs, actions and
strategies have enabled effective measures to make the number of food insecure
people in the country decrease considerably.
This first report presents a specific study on the strategies of governance adopted
by Brazil in order to ensure access to food for all, moreover, an analysis of food
production and availability, and other aspects such as health and the various food
security indicators.
Today, Brazil is already an international reference for fighting hunger. Successful experiences as income transfer, direct purchases for the acquisition of food,
the technical capacity of small producers, among others, are being transferred
to other countries. Such an attitude only expresses that the numbers generated
from these results should be closely observed. Unify the information means presenting the closest to real as possible, to the changes that these actions are causing in the Brazilians day by day.
The society is experiencing a period in which the search for a healthier and more
sustainable world becomes an important commitment in all government agendas.
FAO has in its mandate this important goal that is to be the guiding thread of information and successful experiments.
The report, The State of Food and Nutrition Security in Brazil - A Multidimensional
Portrait, follows this path in terms of assuring elements capable of directly acting
in the reduction of hunger, as a long term commitment that passes through the
integration of food and nutrition security, in the policies, indicators and public
programs in general.
This work combines FAO efforts, but I also cannot fail to mention, the important
and relevant collaboration of many partners who contributed uniquely to the preparation of this study, among them the Ministry of Social Development and Fight
Against Hunger, the Ministry of Agrarian Development, the Brazilian Institute of
Geography and Statistics, as well as researchers and academics.
Finally, I could not fail to pay my thanks to Anne Kepple, FAO Consultant who
coordinated the elaboration of this report, and to all the experts who kindly contributed in the discussion of the chapters.
Have a nice reading!
Alan Bojanic - Representative in Brazil
THE STATE OF FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
5
1
2
3
4
INTRODUCTION
12
Food and Nutrition
14
Security: concept,
dimensions, and
monitoring
Food and Nutrition
Security Governance in
30
Brazil
Food and Nutrition
Security in Brazil:
42
a multi-dimensional
portrait
Critical and emerging
agendas for Food
62
and Nutrition
Security monitoring in
Brazil
References cited
68
12
•
Dimensions of Food and Nutrition Security
16
•
Determinants and consequences of Food and Nutrition Security:
conceptual framework to guide monitoring 18
•
Food insecurity and obesity: the paradox myth 20
•
Food and nutrition security monitoring in Brazil and in the world 21
•
Food and Nutrition Security Programs in Brazil
33
•
Government commitment to Food and Nutrition Security
monitoring in Brazil
39
•
Food production
44
•
Food availability
47
•
Income/access and food expenditures
48
•
Access to adequate food
52
•
Health and access to health services
54
•
Advances and challenges
60
•
Implications for Food and Nutrition Security monitoring
66
•
Closing remarks
67
68
THE STATE OF FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL
A Multi-dimensional Portrait
7
introDuction
The past ten years in Brazil have been
characterized by the consolidation and
institutionalization of successful policies aimed at fighting hunger and promoting food and nutrition security (FNS)
guided by the principle of the Human
Right to Food (HRF). A decade of governmental political commitment, manifested in a participatory, inter-sectoral
strategy and large public investments,
resulted in significant reductions in
hunger and poverty. Brazil has already
accomplished and surpassed the Millennium Development Goals for reducing hunger and poverty1. FAO has been
a partner with the Brazilian government
in this process through technical cooperation agreements.
Civil society plays an important role in
Brazil in the formulation, implementation, and monitoring of policies to end
hunger and promote the progressive realization of the HRF. Social participation
was prioritized and promoted by the Federal Government through institutional
1
IPEA, 2014
structures and arrangements that today
are consolidated in the National Food
and Nutrition Security System (Sistema
Nacional de Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional, or SISAN).
With policies and institutional structures in place to protect advances made in
reducing hunger and promoting FNS, the
Federal Government is taking stock of
the challenges that lie ahead. New and
persistent challenges are on the agenda, such as ways of facing the growing
prevalence of overweight and obesity in
the Brazilian population, and modifying
unhealthy trends in food habits.
There are many possible perspectives
from which to tell this Brazilian story.
Many aspects of the experience can
serve as examples to other governments, including the evolution of inter-sectoral governance of FNS, and the
institutional structures that promote
the participation of diverse actors and
sectors.
One aspect of the story that deserves
to be told, because of the participatory
process that characterizes it and the impressive results, is the evolution of the
FNS monitoring system. A government
priority since the launch of the Zero Hunger strategy in 2003, the FNS monitoring
system was shaped and refined in partnership with civil society and incorporated into the National FNS Policy. The evolution of Brazil´s FNS monitoring system
converges with the international discussion regarding goals and indicators related to hunger for the Post-2015 Development Agenda, where there is consensus
that a suite of indicators is needed to
monitor the diverse dimensions of FNS.
At the same, Brazil´s FNS monitoring system reflects national priorities specific to
the Brazilian context.
The objective of the present report is
to portray the current state of FNS in
Brazil based on diverse indicators, and
to discuss the Brazilian experience of
FNS monitoring, as well as critical and
emergent agendas, in the context of the
international discussion regarding FNS
monitoring.
A broad portrait of FSN in Brazil is presented, beginning with a conceptual
discussion of the different dimensions
of FNS and indicators used internationally and in Brazil. Chapter two describes the evolution of FNS governance in Brazil, which was propelled by a
vigorous discussion between government and civil society that led to the
passage of the National Food and Nutrition Security Law in 2006. The legal
landmarks, institutional structures, and
programs implemented by the Federal
Government to address the challenges
outlined in the National FNS Law are
summarized. Chapter three presents
a multi-dimensional portrait of FNS
in Brazil based on a broad set of indicators. The final chapter summarizes
some of the challenges that emerge
from this portrait as critical agendas for
the 21st century.
THE STATE OF FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
9
1
FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY: CONCEPT,
DIMENSIONS, AND
MONITORING
The concept of food and nutrition security
(FNS) democratically defined in Brazil reflects a broad and integrated perspective:
“Food and nutrition security is
the realization of everyone’s right
to regular and permanent access
to enough food of good quality
without compromising access to
other basic necessities, and based
on food practices that promote
health, respect cultural diversity,
and are environmentally, culturally,
economically, and socially sustainable.”2
The breadth of this definition presents a
challenge for FNS measurement and monitoring – a “monitoring nightmare,” as one
specialist from FAO recently observed. However, in the words of a representative from
the National FNS Secretariat, “It is not a technical concept; it is a political concept, constructed with intense social participation.”
2 National Food and Nutrition
Security Law (Law No. 11.346 of
September 2006).
3 According to FAO (2013) and
the document presented to the
Committee on World Food Security,
“Food security exists when all people
at all times have physical, social, and
economic access to sufficient, safe
and nutritious food to meet their
dietary needs and food preferences
for an active and healthy life (CFS,
2012, p.5). “Nutrition security exists
when food security is combined with
a sanitary environment, adequate
health services, and proper care and
feeding practices to ensure a healthy
life for all household members” (CFS,
2012, p.6). The recommendation was
not approved in Plenary Session,
and it was decided to maintain the
distinction between food security
and nutrition security.
4 GROSS et al., 2000; CFS, 2012;
FAO, 2011.
In spite of the technical challenge, this broad
definition promotes a more integrated perspective and understanding of the interrelations among the diverse dimensions of
FNS – a perspective that has contributed to
integrated, inter-sectoral policies in Brazil.
In keeping the nutritional aspect in the concept of FNS, Brazil converges with the recommendation presented to the Committee
on World Food Security to adopt the terminology food and nutrition security because
it “best reflects the conceptual linkages
between food security and nutrition security,
while also expressing a single integrated
development goal to help guide policy and
programmatic action effectively.”3
In Brazil, the integral nature of the two
aspects is established in the definition,
in people´s consciousness, and in FNS
policies, contributing to reveal the basic
causes that are common to both, which
are associated with the unbalanced food
system imbedded in an economic system that promotes inequality, the unrestrained predominance of the market,
and disregard for the environment.
Dimensions of Food
and Nutrition Security
Many conceptual frameworks have been
proposed to guide technical and political
discussions regarding this broad concept
of FNS. Analysis of the different components and dimensions of FNS helps to reveal the determinants and consequences
of hunger and food insecurity. A shared
understanding is necessary to inform the
discussion of indicators for monitoring
FNS, their inter-relationships, and the
various policies aimed at promoting FNS
and the realization of the HRF.
Four dimensions of food security recognized internationally are availability, access, utilization, and stability.4
Figure 1. Four dimensions of food security
Availability Access Stability U.liza.on 1
Guaranteeing food availability for the
population involves questions related
to food production, international and
national commerce, and food supply
and distribution. Physical and economic access exists when everyone is able
to obtain food in a socially acceptable
manner, for example through purchase,
production, hunting, or barter. This
dimension of food security involves
prices of food (and other basic necessities that compete with food) and the
broad range of things that affect the
set of resources available to people.
Food utilization refers to the biological utilization of the food consumed,
which is influenced by health status,
water and sanitation conditions, and
microbiological and chemical safety of
the food. However, this dimension also
includes nutritional knowledge, food
habits, child feeding practices, and the
social role of food in the family and in
the community. Stability refers to the
temporal element of the other three
dimensions. Problems with food availability, access and utilization can be
chronic, seasonal, or transitory, with
different implications for public policy
as well as the strategies adopted by the
population.
The six dimensions that form the basis
for the FNS Monitoring System in Brazil correspond closely with the dimensions recognized internationally, although more explicit emphasis is given
to health and access to health services
in Brazil (Figure 2). Health and sanitation are among the main determinants
of nutrition security, together with food
access and care and feeding.5 As mentioned above, stability is a dimension
that cuts across all the others.
Figure 2: Counterparts of the dimensions of the Food and Nutrition Security Monitoring System in Brazil and the dimensions adopted internationally
Brazilian FNS Monitoring System: 6 Dimensions AVAILABILITY • Food produc*on • Food availability ACCESS • Income • Access to food UTILIZATION • Health and access to health services ACCESS/UTILIZATION • Educa*on 5
Food and Nutrition Security:
concept, dimensions, and monitoring
CFS, 2012.
13
Determinants and
consequences of
Food and Nutrition Security: a conceptual
framework to guide
monitoring
When thinking about the different dimensions of FNS discussed above, it is important to keep in mind that FNS is influenced
by factors at all socio-demographic levels:
global, national, regional, local, household, and individual. The food security
of households and those who live in them
depends on various household-level factors, which are in turn influenced by a set
of local and regional determinants, which
cannot be understood disassociated from
the national and global contexts. Some
determinants and factors associated with
FNS at these different socio-demographic
levels are presented in Figure 3.
Thinking of FNS in terms of the distinct levels illustrated in Figure 3 helps call attention to some of the basic, underlying causes
of food insecurity at the global and national
levels and their ramifications at other levels.
It also can serve to guide FNS monitoring by
illustrating the need for identifying indicators for the various determinants of FNS at
the different socio-demographic levels.
Figure 3 illustrates “Household/individual
food security” as an ultimate outcome of
determinants at various socio-demographic
levels. This refers to a concept of FNS restricted to food access at the household or
individual level. Grounded in research conducted in the USA to better understand and
measure the lived experience of hunger
and limited food access,6 it is characterized
by components that a later study suggested
are “universal” 7: sufficient food quantity;
adequate dietary quality; and lack of worry
regarding ability to obtain food.
Figure 3: Global, national, regional, local, and household determinants of household and individual food security (adapted from
Kepple & Segall-Corrêa, 2011).
1. Global and na.onal factors
Poli*cal-­‐economic system; development model; world trade Agricultural and environmental policies (food produc*on, sustainability, support for family farmers, climate change) Economic and social policies Commitment to realiza*on of the Human Right to Food 2. Regional and local factors Food produc*on, availability, and prices Access to land Availability and prices of healthy foods Poli*cal stability Ethnic/racial prejudice and inequali*es Health and educa*on services Costs of basic necessi*es Livelihood strategies Jobs – wages, formality, stability Food culture Social assistance network Water and basic sanita*on Food inspec*on services 3. Household factors 6
RADIMER et al., 1992.
7
SWINDALE et al., 2006.
Demographic profile of household unit Gender and educa*on level of head of household Health status of residents Nutri*on knowledge and food habits Income/financial stability Mothers employment and *me Par*cipa*on in social programs Social network Food security (household/ indivídual) 1
the latter often associated with lack of access to water and basic sanitation.
This concept, and having a way to measure it, are useful for various reasons.
While household and individual food security is the consequence of a set of determinants like those presented in Figure
3, it is also itself a determinant of various
potential consequences for people´s
physical, mental and social well-being
(Figure 4). Understanding regarding the
potential negative effects of household
food insecurity has evolved in recent
years, revealing consequences that are
nutritional as well as non-nutritional in
nature.8 There is ample evidence of negative cognitive and psycho-social effects,
regardless of nutritional impacts.9
Figure 4 is thus intended to illustrate coherent ways of using different food security indicators together in studies to shed
light on determinants and consequences
of household and individual food insecurity. With respect to the “Determinants”
on the left of the figure (which corresponds to determinants presented in
Figure 3), many indicators are available
and in use. To measure household and
individual food security (food access),
experience-based food security scales
have gained recognition as valid instruments that are easy to apply. To measure
food consumption, appropriate instruments include food frequency questionnaires, dietary diversity scores, and 24hour recall, as well as food acquisition
surveys. These instruments are useful
for monitoring trends in consumption of
food types, energy, and macro and micro
nutrients. With respect to indicators of
nutritional status, commonly used measures include anthropometry, as well as
clinical and biochemical indicators.
Regarding potential impacts of food insecurity on nutritional status, it is widely
known that food insecurity is associated
with nutritional deficiencies and undernutrition as well as overweight and obesity.10 When considering this relationship,
it is also essential to bear in mind that
nutritional status is influenced by many
factors other than food access, including
food habits, nutrition knowledge, child
feeding habits, and infectious diseases,
Figure 4: Potential Consequences of Food (in)Security (access to
food) in the household.
Determinants Consequences Household/individual Global and na.onal determinants Regional and local determinants Household determinants Water and sanita.on Health services Food Security Food access: Quan.ty Quality Certainty Individual Food consump-­‐
.on
Physical, mental and social WELLBEING Quan.ty Quality Nutri.onal status Nutrient d eficiencies Undernutri.on Overweight/obesity Biological u.liza.on of food Psychosocial and effects cogni.ve 8
FRONGILLO, 2013.
9 NANAMA & FRONGILLO, 2012;
PÉREZ-ESCAMILLA & VIANNA, 2012.
10 NRC, 2006; FRONGILLO, 2013;
GHATTAS, 2014.
Food and Nutrition Security:
concept, dimensions, and monitoring
15
It is evident that it is only possible to account for the breadth of FNS through the
complementary use of diverse indicators. While indicators of food consumption and of nutritional status constitute
essential tools for monitoring food
access and utilization, it is worth noting that they capture only some of the
potential consequences of household/
individual food insecurity. Experiencebased food security scales, applied together with other indicators, can help to
shed light on the relationship between
determinants of household food security and the effects of food insecurity in
the population.
Food insecurity and
obesity: the paradox
myth
Understanding the inclusion of overweight and obesity in the conceptual
framework of FNS as a potential consequence of household food insecurity is
counterintuitive for many people. Initially
it appears to be paradoxical, as though
hunger and overweight were opposites.
The rapid increase in the prevalence of
overweight and obesity – and the chronic
diseases associated with them – have perplexed public opinion and policy makers
who question the need to prioritize policies to address hunger.
11 GHATTAS, 2014.
12 PÉREZ-ESCAMILLA, 2014;
ADAM & EPEL, 2007; EPEL et al.,
2012.
13 OLSON, 1999; ALAIMO, 2001;
CABALLERO, 2005; KAIN, 2003.
However there are various explanations for the increase in the prevalence
of overweight and obesity among lower
income populations as well as for the
co-existence of overweight and food insecurity in the same household.11 The
distinct explanations point to the need
for a set of policies aimed at addressing
the growing obesity rate.
The first explanation is the one that is
most often cited and more in-line with
common sense. Faced with restricted
resources to spend on food, people
make rational choices: they consume
more low-cost, high-energy dense foods.
Fruits and vegetables are often the first
foods to be excluded from the diet because of their high cost.
Another explanation has gained legitimacy as research reveals the neurological mechanisms: the anxiety and stress
associated with poverty and involuntary
food restriction can lead to eating disorders characterized by increased consumption of high energy-dense foods.12
There is also ample evidence of metabolic adaptations in response to long and
recurrent periods of fasting, even prior to
birth.13 When the body suffers repeated
episodes of insufficient food, metabolic
adaptions may take place to save energy,
increasing the risk of developing overweight and metabolic disorders such as
diabetes and hypertension after food access is restored. People who experience
hunger in childhood may be more prone
to developing overweight/obesity and
chronic diseases in adulthood.
These explanations make it clear that
hunger and obesity are not opposites;
lack of food can lead to nutritional deficiencies but it can also lead to nutritional
excesses. For this reason, caution should
be used when adopting anthropometric
measures as indicators of consequences
of food insecurity (or of program impacts), as the relationship between food
insecurity and child weight-for-age, for
example, can be ambiguous.
The various explanations for the association between food insecurity and
overweight point to different solutions.
Nutrition education, which is often considered a priority action for addressing
obesity and overweight, can only be
effective if allied with other policies
1
and actions aimed at the following: 1)
improving the supply of and access to
healthy foods; 2) regulating marketing
of foods high in sugar and fat; 3) creating environments that promote healthy
eating; 4) guaranteeing adequate food
during pregnancy and early childhood;
and 5) decreasing household and individual food insecurity that leads to
psychosocial stress. Indicators must be
identified and used that can contribute
to monitoring these factors associated
with overweight and obesity.
Despite the growing epidemic of overweight and obesity among people of all
social classes in industrialized as well as
emerging economies, and the priority
attributed to the problem in the Committee on World Food Security´s Global
Strategy, it is rarely explicitly included in
conceptual frameworks of FNS. The FNS
monitoring system of Brazil is exemplary
in this respect, as it includes indicators of
overweight and obesity.
Food and nutrition
security monitoring
in Brazil and in the
world
At the international level, the discussion
about food security monitoring is moving
toward consensus regarding a suite of indicators with proven validity and international comparability that account for the
various dimensions of food security. In
Brazil, the evolution of FNS monitoring has
kept pace with – and at times surpassed
– progress at the international level, providing a showcase where theory is put into
practice through public policy and institutional structures for FNS governance.
On the occasion of the II National FNS Conference in 2004, the following proposal
regarding “Monitoring, evaluation, and indicators” was given priority approval:
Create a National FNS Information
system [...] that takes into account:
a) food security, with indicators
related to food production, availability, commerce, access and consumption of healthy food; and b)
nutrition security, with indicators
related to food habits and biological utilization of food (anthropometric and biochemical indicators,
etc.) throughout the life cycle […].14
Thus, delegates to the conference –
representatives of civil society, social
movements, research institutions, and
government – affirmed the indivisibility
of the food and nutrition components of
FNS and recognized that no single indicator can represent the broad concept
adopted for Brazil; a set of indicators is
needed to account for the various dimensions of FNS.
The government worked closely with civil society to identify ways to monitor FNS
in Brazil and the diverse programs and
policies that compose the hunger alleviation strategy. The resulting FNS monitoring system is composed of nearly sixty
indicators divided among the six dimensions of FNS presented above in Figure 2.
A recent progress report on the National
2012-2015 FNS Plan, published by the
National Inter-Ministerial FNS Chamber
(Câmara Interministerial de Segurança Alimentar e Nutritional – CAISAN), presented
a multi-dimensional analysis based on
diverse indicators that compose the FNS
monitoring system.15
Thus, FNS monitoring in Brazil mirrors the
debate at the international level where
there is growing consensus regarding
ways of measuring and monitoring FNS.16
At the same time, however, the FNS
monitoring system in Brazil reflects priorities that are specific to Brazil, defined
through a participatory process.
Food and Nutrition Security:
concept, dimensions, and monitoring
14 CONSEA, 2004.
15 CAISAN, 2014.
16 JONES et al., 2013; COATES,
2013; FAO, 2013; FAO, 2014b.
17
Ways of conceptualizing and monitoring
FNS and the indicators selected reflect
different perspectives and purposes.
Perspectives are likely to vary according
to institutional mandate, socio-demographic level, field or sector, and even
ideology.
The institutional mandate
of international agencies like FAO is to
conduct global food security monitoring
using indicators with international comparability. The Brazilian government, on
the other hand, conducts FNS monitoring
at the national and sub-national levels
and of vulnerable population groups,
aiming to inform policies and guide
the investment of public resources. An
analysis of indicators used for global FNS
monitoring reveals that the Brazilian government uses many of the same indicators used internationally, as well as many
others that specifically reflect the Brazilian context and priorities.
Global Food Security monitoring: the role of Fao
Statistics Division, FAO-Rome
Since its foundation, Fao has been at the
imports of food commodities, on one side,
forefront of the task of measuring food se-
and all forms of utilization, on the other.
curity. Providing member countries with
the data to inform FbS are obtained regu-
reliable information on the state of food
larly from national and international of-
insecurity in the world has been one of the
ficial sources, validated and integrated
founding mandates of the organization, to
when necessary by Fao own estimates.
which it has responded by devoting considerable efforts in developing standards,
methods and tools to collect, validate and
publish data on many variables that bear
relevance for the various dimensions of
food security.
the PoU is an estimate of the percentage
of people that are likely to be consuming, on a regular basis, quantities of food
that are insufficient to cover the needs for
a normally active life. estimates are obtained through a simple, yet sufficiently
national level measures of food availabil-
sophisticated statistical model that uses
ity and of the adequacy of food access are
information on the country’s supply of
the two fundamental pieces of information
food, as provided by the FbS, and its distri-
produced by the Fao on a regular basis.
bution across the population, usually pro-
traditionally, the two main vehicles used
vided by large scale household consump-
to convey this information on countries’
tion and expenditure surveys. these are
food security status have been the Food
contrasted with the levels and distribution
balance Sheets (FbS) and the estimates
of caloric intake that would be required for
of the prevalence of undernourishment
a healthy and active life, given the popula-
(PoU) in the population.
tions’ composition in terms of sex, age and
through the FbS, an assessment of the national food supply is obtained by a careful
account of all sources and various utilizations of food commodities. an estimate
of the total food consumption (in dietary
energy equivalent quantities) is obtained
as the balance between production and
body sizes to estimate the likely incidence
of food deprivation. the quality (i.e., precision and reliability) of the PoU estimates
strongly depend on the quality of the underlying data on food production, trade,
utilization, and on the distribution of food
access in the population, which points to
1
the importance of countries’ investment in
severe food insecurity, obtained through
basic data generation.
application of the Food insecurity experi-
through the differential impact that investments in agricultural production and trade
can have on average food consumption,
or that economic and social policies can
have on the distribution of access to food
across the different population strata, the
PoU permits an assessment of the impact
that various policies and programs have on
ence Scale (FieS) in nationally representative samples of the population. the FieS
is the most recent evolution of experiencebased food security measurement tools,
already successfully used in several countries to provide a quick and reliable measure of individual and households’ ability
to access food.
food security over time, to the extent that
through the voices of the hungry project,
existing data sources are sufficiently up-
Fao Statistics division has developed the
dated to capture the relevant aspects.
analytic tools needed to ensure global
the relevance of Fao food security statistics for global assessments of hunger and
food insecurity has been long recognized,
as witnessed by the attention devoted by
policy makers, international organizations
and analysts throughout the world to the
Fao figures. in 2012, Fao started publishing a comprehensive suite of food security
indicators at national level, covering more
than 180 countries, which includes many
additional variables on various aspects
that are related to determinants and out-
comparability of experience-based food
insecurity measures, and will collect food
insecurity information through the FieS
questionnaire in more than 150 countries,
starting in 2014. these indicators will provide an effective means to monitor that
“all people have access to adequate, safe,
affordable, and nutritious food all year
round,” the basis for one of the targets included in the recent draft of the new Sustainable development Goals for the post2015 development agenda.
comes of countries’ food security. these
we are confident that Fao´s recent efforts
are intended to allow for more nuanced
will greatly improve the collective ability
analyses of the all the food security dimen-
to monitor the evolution of the incidence
sions, including utilization and stability, to
and severity of food insecurity in a reliable
contribute to better informed policies and
and timely manner, a feature that will bring
programs.
many positive outcomes, including allow-
the next addition to the Fao suite of national food security indictors will be the
indicators of prevalence of moderate and
ing for better assessing the impacts of crises and to inform effective solutions for a
world without hunger.
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY:
CONCEPT, DIMENSIONS, AND MONITORING
19
Indicators of FOOD
PRODUCTION and AVAILABILITY
With respect to food production and availability, many of the indicators in the Brazilian FNS Monitoring System are similar to
those used globally, for example, indicators of the production and availability (for
national consumption) of a list of key agricultural products. However, one observes
a number of indicators used in Brazil that
reflect other concerns: food sovereignty;
sustainable food production systems; use
of agricultural pesticides and genetically
modified seeds; increasing occupation of
land by large monocultures; participation
of family farming, in terms of land occupation as well as food production. These
are priorities defined in the participatory
and inter-sectoral bodies responsible for
FNS governance in Brazil. They are largely
controversial issues on which there is no
national consensus, but the inclusion of indicators in the FNS monitoring system gives
them visibility and provides evidence to inform the debate.
Indicators of FOOD
ACCESS
Prevalence of Undernourishment (FAO)
17 UNITED NATIONS, 2008.
18 IBGE, 2010.
19 CAISAN, 2014.
10 FAO, 2014a.
FAO´s Prevalence of Undernourishment
(POU) indicator, which has been used for
decades to monitor global trends and compare countries and regions, is an estimate of
the adequacy of food energy (kcalorie) consumption in the population. It is one of the
indicators selected by the United Nations to
monitor countries’ progress toward achievement of the Millennium Development Goal
to reduce hunger by half by 2015.17
The POU is an indirect indicator of food
access that is calculated based on three
parameters: 1) availability of kcalories
per capita (calculated based on National
Food Balance Sheets); 2) an estimate of
the population distribution of access to
food; and 3) estimates of energy needs
in the population. Since both food availability and food access are considered in
the calculation, this compound indicator provides evidence related to both of
these dimensions of food security.
The data source used to calculate the
second parameter (estimate of the population distribution of food access) varies
from one country to another. In Brazil, it
is based on food acquisition data from
the National Family Budget Survey.18
POU estimates for Brazil published by FAO
in recent years (7.1% in 2013) called the
attention of authorities in the Ministry
of Social Development and Fight Against
Hunger (MDS) because they appeared to
diverge from national indicators showing
evidence of more positive impacts of social policies. A formal request to FAO from
MDS for information regarding the basis
for the calculation resulted in a collaborative process involving FAO, MDS, and the
Brazilian Institute of Statistics and Geography (IBGE). It was found that the national data used to estimate food access
in the population did not take into account the significant percentage of food
consumed outside the home in Brazil, particularly meals provided by the National
School Feeding Program, which benefited
43 million students in the public school
system in 2012.19 Thus, food access in the
population was being underestimated.
Close collaboration between FAO and
IBGE made it possible to use indirect
data of food consumption outside the
home, including school meals. The resulting revised estimates for Brazil show
the POU dropping below 5% in 20042006, with continued gradual decline in
the years that followed.20
1
Other indirect indicators of
FOOD ACCESS
Up to a given income level, it is generally
observed that the proportion of household income spent on food – and risk of
food insecurity - decreases as income
increases. For this reason, another indicator of food insecurity used internationally is the proportion of income spent on
food in poor households, which is readily
available for the majority of countries. In
Brazil, this information is collected periodically through the National Family
Budget Survey.21
Households that are obligated to spend a
larger proportion of their income on food
are also more vulnerable to increases in
food prices. For this reason, the domestic food price index and volatility of the
domestic food price index (the latter an
indicator of the “stability” dimension of
food security) are also indicators of food
security used internationally and in Brazil. Increases and volatility of food prices
have been a growing concern in recent
years in Brazil.22
In most households in the world, income
is an important determining factor of the
food security situation. Indicators such
as per capita income, and poverty and
extreme poverty levels, compose the
FNS monitoring system in Brazil, but not
internationally.
Another aspect of FNS that assumes
greater visibility in FNS monitoring in
Brazil than internationally is inequality.
The Gini index of income inequality is
among the FNS indicators used in Brazil,
as well as a number of other indicators
of racial, ethnic, and gender inequalities
related to risk of food insecurity. Documented evidence of higher risk of food
insecurity among traditional communities (indigenous populations, communi-
ties of slave descendants, and others),
and in certain regions of Brazil, increases
the visibility of such inequalities and
helps promote policies to address them.
Experience-based Food Security Scales
In recent years, experience-based food security scales have been gaining recognition
because of their proven validity and utility
for estimating the number of people experiencing food insecurity in the population.
Indicators of food access at the household
or individual level, they provide estimates
of the prevalence of food insecurity at different levels of severity based on interviews conducted directly with people. The
questions refer to food-related behaviors
and anxiety in the face of limited food access. For this reason, experience-based
food security scales could be considered
the indicators that come closest to measuring realization of the Right to Food.
Brazil was among the first countries to
develop its own experience-based scale,
the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale, which
was adapted from the U.S. Household
Food Security Survey Module to the Brazilian context in 2004.23 It was applied in
three national population surveys from
2004 to 2009, making it possible to document trends in food insecurity severity
in the country and among different subpopulations. Current plans are to include it in the continuing family budget
survey beginning in 2014.
Experiences with food security scales in
Brazil, Colombia, and other countries in
Latin America inspired a regional initiative, supported by FAO, which resulted in
the Latin American and Caribbean Food
Security Scale. Its application in national
surveys in various countries confirmed
its international validity and acceptance
by national authorities.24
Food and Nutrition Security:
concept, dimensions, and monitoring
21 IBGE, 2010b.
22 MALUF & SPERANZA, 2013;
CONSEA, 2014a.
23 SEGALL-CORRÊA et al., 2007.
24 BALLARD et al., 2013.
21
This successful experience with a regional food security scale convinced FAO
of the viability of an experience-based
food security scale for global monitoring. The Voices of the Hungry Project
was launched in 2013 to develop a scale
with international comparability, the
Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES),
which was piloted in the same year and
included, beginning in 2014, in the Gallup World Poll ®, conducted annually
in more than 150 countries. The FIES is
among the set of indicators being considered for global monitoring of food
security in the context of the Post-2015
Development Agenda.25
Dietary Diversity Score used by the U.S.
Agency for International Development.
Based on self-reported food consumption data, and analyzed according to food
groups, both have been shown to be
valid indicators of quantity of food consumed, although evidence is lacking regarding their international comparability
as indicators of dietary quality.26 Dietary
diversity indexes specifically for children
under two years of age and women of
reproductive age have also been tested
and shown to be valid indicators of dietary quality in these specific population
groups, but their international comparability has yet to be tested.27
Indicators of FOOD CONSUMPTION
The Food Consumption Score and Dietary Diversity Score are not included
in the national FNS monitoring system
because national food consumption
data with good quality and periodicity is
available for conducting detailed analyses of food and nutrient consumption.
The priority attributed to monitoring the
dietary quality in Brazil is reflected in the
inclusion, in the national FNS monitoring
system, of indicators related to fruit and
vegetable consumption, as well as specific macro and micro nutrients.
The questions that compose experiencebased food security scales address the
quality of the diet and quantity of food
consumed; however they are not designed to actually quantify energy and
nutrient consumption. This information
is typically estimated based on food expenditure or food consumption surveys.
When national data on individual food
consumption is available, as is the case
for Brazil, it is possible to carry out more
precise analyses of nutrient consumption and dietary quality.
Some tools have been developed to collect information on food consumption in
countries where such data is not so readily available, including the Food Consumption Score developed by the World
Food Programme, and the Household
25 Rome, 2014b.
26 JONES et al., 2013.
27 Idem, ibidem.
Indicators of FOOD UTILIZATION
Indicators of nutritional status
The second indicator selected for global
monitoring of the Millennium Development Goal regarding hunger is weightfor-age in children under five years of
1
age. It is an indicator that is available
for most countries, enabling global comparisons. Other measures of nutritional
status that compose the set of indicators
used internationally include the following: child height-for-age and weightfor-height; adult Body Mass Index; and
prevalence of Vitamin A deficiency and
iron-deficiency anemia in women and
children.
While all of the above indicators are commonly associated with consequences of
food insecurity, they should be interpreted with caution for reasons discussed
earlier, as food insecurity is not synonymous with malnutrition. Food insecurity
may be present without measureable
consequences for nutritional status, and
can be associated with underweight as
well as overweight.
Indicators of nutritional status that are
included in the national FNS monitoring system in Brazil are essentially the
same as those used internationally, with
two notable additions: 1) health and
nutrition indicators specific to the indigenous population; and 2) indicators of
overweight and obesity among children,
adolescents, and adults. The former is a
reflection of the severe food insecurity
situation that characterizes the indigenous population in Brazil, and the priority attributed to monitoring the situation of this vulnerable population. The
emphasis on monitoring overweight and
obesity illustrates concerns regarding the
rapid increase in the Brazilian population
among all social classes. The prevalence
of overweight/obesity is among the set
of indicators being considered for global
monitoring of the Post-1015 Development Goal “Eradicate malnutrition.”.28
Other indicators of the “Utilization” dimension of food
security
Percentages of the population with access to potable water, basic sanitation,
and health care are important indicators
of the “utilization” dimension of food security, internationally and in Brazil. One
aspect that distinguishes Brazil is indicators that reveal heightened concern for
monitoring the situation in rural areas.
The FNS monitoring system in Brazil also
includes indicators of the prevalence of
breastfeeding, reflecting the importance
attributed to monitoring and promotion
of this key determinant of food and nutrition security.
A detailed description of all food security indicators used internationally and in
Brazil is beyond the scope of this report.
The indicators that compose the FNS
monitoring system in Brazil are presented in Table 1 according to the dimension of food security. It is evident that
the path followed by Brazil to develop its
FNS monitoring system converges with
the trajectory at the international level.
The selection of indicators was based on
technical and scientific criteria, but guided by political priorities defined through
a participatory process.
28
Food and Nutrition Security:
concept, dimensions, and monitoring
FAO, 2014b.
23
TABLe 1: Brazilian Food and Nutrition Security Monitoring System –
matrix of indicators
1. FOOD PrODuCTiON
3.3. income equality – Gini co-efficient
3.4. Percent of the population in ex-
1.1. Quantity produced (tons) of the
foods most consumed by the population
1.2. Quantity produced (tons) of vegetables according to pesticide use
1.3. Quantity of grains produced by family and non-family farmers
1.4. Planted area (hectares) of various
crops (nuts, fruits, vegetables)
1.5. area occupied by family farmers in
relation to total area of agricultural production
1.6. number of family farms in relation
treme poverty
3.5. Percentage of household income
spent on food
3.5.1 Percentage of household income
spent on food consumed at home
3.5.2. Percentage of household income
spent on food outside the home
3.5.3 Percentage of non-monetary food
acquisition
3.6. Price indexes
3.6.1 Consumer price index
to total number of farms
3.6.2 broad consumer price index
1.7. number of people employed in farming
3.6.3 Producer price index
2. FOOD AVAiLABiLiTY
4. ACCeSS TO ADeQuATe FOOD
2.1. availability for domestic consump-
4.1. Percentages of total food energy
tion of various agricultural and livestock
consumption according to macronutri-
products
ents
2.2. Quantity of fruits and vegetables
4.2. household food availability – food
sold, according to each product
acquired for home consumption
2.3. evolution of domestic consumption
4.3. Prevalence of mild, moderate, and
of fish
severe household food insecurity
3. INCOMe/ACCeSS AND FOOD eXPeNDiTureS
4.4. mean consumption of macro and
micronutrients per capita
4.4.1. mean household consumption of
macro and micronutrients per capita
3.1. household per capita income
3.2. employment rate
4.4.2. mean consumption of macro and
micronutrients per capita outside the
home
1
5. HeALTH AND ACCeSS TO HeALTH
SerViCeS
5.1.anthropometric measurements at
all stages of life
5.1.1. nutritional status of children up
to 5 years old
5.1.1.1. Child weight-for-age
5.1.1.2 Child height-for-age
5.9.1 Contamination of foods with agricultural pesticides – percentage of irregular samples
5.9.2 monitoring of veterinary medication residues in foods of animal origin
5.10. basic sanitation
5.10.1 Percentage of households connected to public water supply
5.10.2 Percentage of households with
solid waste collection services
5.10.3 Percentage of households served
5.1.2. nutritional status of adolescents–
by public sewer systems or septic sys-
10 to 19 years old
tems
5.1.3. nutritional status of adults– 20 to
5.11. water and sanitation in the schools
59 years of age
5.1.4. nutritional status of pregnant
women
5.2. low birth weight
5.3. Prevalence of breastfeeding
5.4. access to prenatal care
5.5. infant mortality rate
5.6. Prevalence of iron-deficiency anemia in children under 5 years old
5.6.1. monitoring of fortification of flour
with folic acid and iron
5.11.1 Percentage of schools served by
public water supply
5.11.2 Percentage of schools served by
public sewer systems or septic systems
. EDuCATiON
6.1. years of schooling of the head of
household
6.2. literacy rate in adults 15 years old
and older
6.3. Percentage of children 5 to 17 years
5.7. Prevalence of vitamin a deficiency
of age who do not attend school
5.8. monitoring of iodine levels in salt
6.4. Percent of direct public investment
5.9. Food safety
in education as a percentage of GnP
Soure: CaiSan
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY:
CONCEPT, DIMENSIONS, AND MONITORING
25
2
FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY GOVERNANCE AND
POLICIES IN BRAZIL
Governance of food and nutrition security evolved significantly during the
decade from 2003 to 2013 in Brazil.
Through a series of legal milestones,
consolidation of institutional arrangements by the Federal Government, and
effective promotion of the participation of diverse stakeholders, a government strategy to eradicate hunger is
now reflected in a National Food Security and Nutrition Policy aimed at promoting and protecting the Human Right
to Food (HRF).
Networks of well-organized social movements allied with religious leaders and
members of academic communities from
diverse fields first pushed hunger and
food insecurity onto the public policy
agenda in the early 1990s, leading to
the formation of the first National Food
and Nutrition Security Council (CONSEA)
in 1993. Although this CONSEA had a
short political life, social movements
and institutions continued to mobilize,
and when Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was
elected President in 2003, ending hunger became the government’s number
one priority.
29
FAO, 2011
30 Brasil, 2010.
The CONSEA was reinstated in 2003 as
an advisory council with a direct institutional link to the Presidency, and an
Extraordinary Ministry of Food and Nutrition Security (Ministério Extraordinário de
Segurança Alimentar - MESA) was formed.
The Zero Hunger Strategy was launched
the same year. The MESA was merged one
year later with two other ministries to improve integration of poverty and hunger
alleviation policies and programs, resulting in the Ministry of Social Development
and Fight against Hunger (MDS), which
today is responsible for a significant portion of FNS policies and programs.
The Zero Hunger Strategy was composed
of more than thirty integrated programs
spanning nineteen government ministries, with poverty alleviation as one key
aspect of a much broader approach to
promoting food and nutrition security – a
strategy very much in line with the twintrack approach promoted by FAO.29 The
programs that composed the Zero Hunger strategy were organized according
to four priority areas: 1) food access; 2)
strengthening family farming; 3) income
generation; and 4) social mobilization
and participation.30
The ambitious conditional income transfer program, Bolsa Família, comprised the
Zero Hunger Strategy together with policies aimed at job creation, income generation, minimum wage increases, social
protection, support for family farmers,
and intensification of agrarian reform.
Nutrition programs, such as the National
School Feeding Program, Vitamin A and
iron supplementation programs, and
food assistance for vulnerable populations were aimed at addressing hunger
and malnutrition directly, along with government programs that supported food
banks, community kitchens, and low-cost
popular restaurants. A water-cistern
construction program was created to
promote access to water in the semi-arid
region of Brazil
The success of the Zero Hunger Strategy
can be largely attributed to the political
commitment at the level of the Office
2
of the President, which promoted the involvement of diverse sectors at all levels
of government and created institutional
arrangements that ensured the participation of civil society. The main one was
the CONSEA, already cited above, which
constitutes a space for participatory democracy where diverse stakeholder perspectives and interests are debated. The
President and two-thirds of the members
of the CONSEA are representatives of civil
society, and one-third is composed of governmental representatives. The CONSEA
has been integrally involved in the evolution and monitoring of the Zero Hunger
Strategy. It played a key role in promoting
FNS policies, institutional structures, and
laws that transformed key aspects of the
strategy into governmental policy to promote and protect the HRF.
The CONSEA shepherded the passage of
the National Food and Nutrition Security
Law of 2006 (Lei Orgânica de Segurança
Alimentar e Nutricional – Law No. 11.346),
which instituted the National Food and
Nutrition Security System (SISAN), founded on the principle that promotion and
protection of the HRF is an obligation of
the State. The objectives of the SISAN
include formulation, implementation,
and monitoring of FNS policies through
a decentralized approach and coordination of government and civil society actions. To promote the coordination of actions pertaining to the various sectors, its
structure includes two types of FNS coordinating bodies at the national level, regulated by decrees in 2007 (6.272/2007
and 6.273/2007): the CONSEA, whose
president is from civil society; and the
Interministerial FNS Chamber (Câmara
Interministerial de Segurança Alimentar
e Nutricional - CAISAN), presided over by
the MDS with representatives from twenty government ministries. The CAISAN
is the government body responsible for
implementation and monitoring of the
National FNS Policy, including coordination with FNS bodies at the state and municipal levels. Currently the CAISAN and
CONSEA are working jointly to build the
SISAN at these sub-national levels.
The CONSEA played a key role in promoting two more important legal landmarks
in 2010: the Constitutional amendment
that included the Right to Food among
the social rights guaranteed by the Constitution; and Decree 7.272, which instituted the National FNS Policy. In 2011,
the National FNS Plan 2012/2015 was
launched, drawn up by the CAISAN in
consultation with the CONSEA. The plan
incorporates the many FNS actions of the
Federal Government into a unified plan
and serves as an effective instrument for
monitoring the progressive realization of
the HRF.
Food and Nutrition Security programs and
actions in Brazil
The National FNS Policy outlines eight directives which guided the development
of the National FNS Plan 2012/2015.
The programs that composed the Zero
Hunger Strategy were complemented by
others and incorporated into the plan.
The principal FNS programs and actions
in Brazil are presented in Table 2 according to the respective directive of the National FNS Policy.
Food and Nutrition Security Governance in Brazil
29
TABLe 2: Main programs and actions according to directive of the
National FNS Policy.
DireCTiVe 1 – Promote universal access to adeQuate,
healthy food
•
Food supply actions
•
distribution
•
•
Bolsa Família conditional income
centers
for
family
farmer produce (mdS)
Family business Support network
transfer program (mdS)
and the Produce and livestock mar-
•
disability benefits (mdS)
ket modernization Program (maPa/
•
national School Feeding Program
(meC/Fnde)
•
Food banks, popular restaurants &
community kitchens (mdS)
•
•
Food for specific population groups
(indigenous populations, homeless
(maPa/Conab)
•
Promotion of rural productive activities (mdS)
•
Fishing and agriculture (mPa)
•
national agro-ecology and organic
Farming Policy (mda and 9 others)
rural workers, and other vulnerable
groups) (mdS)
minimum price guarantee program
and public food stocks program
Supplementary food program for
workers (mte)
•
Conab)
•
agro-biodiversity management Program (mma)
DireCTiVe 2 – Promote the
food supply and creation of
sustainable,
decentralized
systems of food production,
extraction, processing and
distribution.
•
national Program to Strengthen
Family Farming (mda)
•
mdS, maPa/Conab, meC)
•
rural extension and technical assistance (mda)
•
Family Farming Crop insurance
(mda)
•
agrarian reform (mda/inCra)
•
territorial development (mdt)
•
Financial autonomy for rural women (mda)
Family Farming Food Procurement
for institutional markets (mda,
•
•
•
management, control and education related to agricultural pesti-
Family Farming Food Procurement
cide use and genetically modified
Program
seeds (mS/anviSa and maPa)
allocation of 30 percent of food
expenditures for School meal Programs to purchase directly from
family farmers
•
Pesticide residue analysis Program
(mS/anviSa e maPa)
2
DireCTiVe 3 – Institution of
permanent processes of nutrition education, research,
and education regarding the
Human Right to Food (MDS
and MS)
•
•
•
Caring brazil (brasil Carinhoso), focused on early childhood
health in the Schools Program
•
vitamin a and iron supplementation
training for public workers regard-
research in FnS (mCti)
DireCTiVe 4 – eXpand and coordinate FnS actions for indigenous people and traditional communities.
•
inCra and FUnai)
intersectoral Strategy to Control
and Prevent obesity
•
Family health Program
•
regulation of food marketing
•
Strategy to Promote breastfeeding
and infant Feeding
•
regularization of landownership
of traditional communities (mda/
•
scent (SePPir)
national Food and nutrition Policy
ing the right to Food (mdS)
•
and Communities of african de-
•
(meC/Fnde e mS)
•
develop-
training of teachers and munici-
Program “educating with school
(meC/Fnde)
•
Sustainable
ment Plan for traditional Peoples
gardens” (meC/Fnde)
Food Guide for the brazilian Popu-
pal school meals council members
•
national
DireCTiVe 5 – Strengthen
food and nutrition actions
at all levels of health care,
in coordination With other
food and nutrition security
policies (mS)
lation (mS)
•
•
nutritional monitoring in the public health system
•
national Food and nutrition monitoring System - SiSvan
national territorial and environmental management Plan for in-
•
indigenous health Program (mS)
DireCTiVe  – Promotion of
universal access to enough
clean Water
•
Commercialization of socio-biodi-
•
digenous lands (mJ/FUnai)
•
•
Program to promote productive ac-
catchment
cisterns
(mdS and mi)
versity products (mma and maPa/
Conab)
rainwater
basic sanitation in rural areas (mS/
FUnaSa, mda/inCra)
tivities (mdS)
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY GOVERNANCE IN BRAZIL
31
DireCTiVe  – Promote food
sovereignty, food and nutrition security, and the right
to Food at the international
level.
•
DireCTiVe  – monitoring of
the realiZation of the human
right to Food.
•
of the multi-dimensional matrix of
FnS indicators (CaiSan)
humanitarian and technical FnS
cooperation – mainly South-South
(mre and other Federal institutions)
FnS monitoring – implementation
•
monitoring of violations of the
human right to Food (Sdh)
Source: CaiSan and mdS
The National FNS Plan 2012/2015 integrates dozens of actions and programs,
pertaining to twenty different government ministries, related to income distribution, social protection, food supply,
strengthening family farming, promotion
of healthy eating, and access to enough
food. The Brazil Without Extreme Poverty Plan, launched in 2011, is closely
linked to the National FNS Plan, with
policies that reinforce the commitment
to eradicating hunger and extreme poverty in Brazil.
Government expenditures on social programs more than doubled from 2000 to
2012, attaining 16.9% of GNP.31 The Federal budget for FNS programs and actions
totaled approximately US$35 billion in
2013. While social protection programs
account for the largest portion of Federal allocations for FNS, expenditures
on programs related to food production
and distribution, including an array of
programs to promote family farming, accounted for one sixth of Federal spending for FNS programs in 2013.32
31
CAISAN, 2014.
32 CONSEA, 2014a.
33 CAISAN, 2014.
The Bolsa Família income transfer program currently provides cash benefits,
preferentially in the mother’s name,
to more than 13.8 million poor and extremely poor families on the condition
that children in the family remain in
school and visit the local health clinic
monthly for growth monitoring and immunizations. In this way, it promotes the
health and education of program beneficiaries. Investments in this program tripled in ten years, reaching nearly US$11
billion in 2013.33
The Brazil without Extreme Poverty Plan
introduced new, complementary policies in 2011 with the ambitious goal of
eradicating extreme poverty. The Plan is
focused on three priority areas: improving access to public services (education,
health, social assistance, and food security); guaranteed minimum income; and
inclusion in the workforce. Efforts were
reinforced to include families in the Unified National Registry of Social Programs,
with a focus on reaching chronically food
insecure and marginalized populations.
In March 2013, families in extreme poverty began receiving benefits that ensure
a minimum per capita income of approximately US$1.25 per day. At the same
time, the National Technical Training and
Employment program was created to increase the availability of and access to
professional and technology courses.
The Brasil Carinhoso Program complemented the strategy further in 2012
with actions focused on promoting the
education, health, and nutrition of children in their early formative years. Bolsa
Família benefits were increased for chil-
2
dren and pregnant and lactating women,
and access to day care and preschools
was expanded. Municipal governments
received increased Federal support for
day care centers, preschools, and school
feeding programs. Since 2011, more
than 22.1 million Brazilians have been
lifted out of extreme poverty as a result
of the additional policies that compose
the Brazil Without Extreme Poverty Plan
(Figure 5).34
Another pillar of food and nutrition security policy in Brazil is the National School
Feeding Program, which provides free
meals to all public school pupils – a total of more than 43 million students in
2012. Public schools in Brazil serve children mainly from lower-income families,
and the improved access to food provided by the program represents a substantial benefit for poorer households.
Federal investment in the school meals
program was US$1.5 billion in 2012 – a
nearly four-fold increase in ten years.35
The program’s impact has been significant enough to reduce the estimated
Prevalence of Undernourishment in Brazil by at least one-third compared with
what it would likely have been without
the program. 36
Another priority of the Federal government reflected in the National FNS Plan
is support of family farming. The National Program to Strengthen Family Farming
provides a broad array of credit programs
to family farmers and farmers in agrarian
reform settlements. In the 2014/2015
harvest year, resources for the program
totaled more than US$10 billion.
The Technical Assistance and Rural Extension system has also been re-built
to promote food production by family farmers. Federal investments increased from about US$25 million to
over US$420 million in 2014. The National Technical Assistance and Rural
Extension Policy37 and creation of the
National Technical Assistance and Rural
Extension Agency38 give structure and
permanency to this policy.
Other policies such as the provision of
crop insurance against food price risks
and extreme climatic events, minimum
price guarantees, specific support to
Figure 5: Reduction in extreme poverty among participants of the
Bolsa Família income transfer program (millions).
34
CAISAN, 2014.
35 CAISAN, 2013; 2014.
36 CBORLIZZI & CAFIERO, unpublished manuscript .
37 Law 12.188, January 11, 2010.
Source: CAISAN, 2014
38 Decree nº 8.252, May 26, 2014.
Food and Nutrition Security Governance in Brazil
33
women, rural development, and technical assistance aim to increase productivity and incomes while also responding
to specific needs in different regions of
Brazil.
The innovative Family Farming Food Procurement Program, launched in 2003 as
part of Zero Hunger, makes it possible
for family farmers to sell their products
directly to the government. Federal allocations for the program increased nearly
tenfold since 2003, to exceed US$600
million in 2013.39 The food purchased
through the program is used to serve
people at risk of food insecurity. By
strengthening family farming, reducing
rural poverty, and providing food to vulnerable populations, the Family Farming
Food Procurement Program constitutes
an example of the twin-track approach
aimed at addressing the basic causes of
hunger as well as directly alleviating hunger and malnutrition. More than 185,000
farmers throughout Brazil participated in
the program in 2012, including a significant number of women.40
In 2009, the National School Meals Program further expanded the institutional
market for family farmers by adopting a
policy requiring public schools to allocate at least 30 percent of food expenditures to direct purchases from family
farmers. By 2012, 80 percent of public
schools were purchasing directly from
family farmers, and half had achieved the
30 percent goal.41
39 CAISAN, 2014.
40 Idem, ibidem.
41 Idem, ibidem.
42 CONSEA, 2014a.
The Federal government is also implementing nutrition education in the
schools and other public institutions. In
2013, the National Educational Development Fund published a resolution to
carry out nutrition education activities in
the schools and to improve the nutritional quality of school meals through training of school administrators and workers
at the municipal level. Another program
implemented in 2007, the Health in the
Schools Program, is an inter-sectoral initiative based on coordinated actions of
the public school system and the public health system, aimed at promoting
health and nutrition of students of all
ages.
The Ministry of Health is responsible for
a number of policies and programs that
are fundamental to the promotion of
FNS (Table 2), including the Basic Health
Care system, the Family Health Strategy,
and National Food and Nutrition Monitoring System (SISVAN). Government
support for Basic Health Care increased
66% from 2010 to 2013.42 Other important FNS programs of the Ministry of
Health include the Vitamin A and iron
supplementation programs, which were
expanded under the Brasil Carinhoso
program beginning in 2012. National
strategies headed by the Ministry of
Health that are extremely relevant for
FNS include the Strategy to Promote
Breastfeeding and Infant Feeding and
the Inter-sectoral Strategy to Control
and Prevent Obesity.
Government actions to promote the
FNS of traditional populations in Brazil
(indigenous people, slave descendent
communities and others) include various policies to address the basic causes
of hunger and vulnerability of these
groups, such as policies related to land
ownership and territorial demarcation,
and access to health services and basic
sanitation (Table 2). Environmental protection and commercialization of sociobiodiversity products are also the subjects of government policy.
Of the FNS programs created in recent
years, one observes an increased number of actions aimed at supporting family
farming and traditional populations, as
2
well as growing emphasis on the promotion of healthy eating and prevention of
overweight and obesity. A presentation
of all the policies and programs that compose the National FNS Plan is beyond the
scope of this report. A detailed account
of all the actions in the 2012/2015 Plan
was published recently by the CAISAN,
with detailed descriptions of programs,
number of participants, and public investments, as well as discussion of the
principal achievements and remaining
challenges. 43
Government commitment to Food and Nutrition Security Monitoring in Brazil
Monitoring is fundamental to FNS governance in Brazil. It was declared to be a
priority during the II National FNS Conference in 2004, was an integral part of
the strategy to fight hunger from the beginning, and is now one of the directives
of the National FNS Policy.
Because it is based on the perspective
of the HRF, it emphasizes monitoring of
inequalities in access to basic services,
legal mechanisms for protecting the HRF,
and actions to inform the public regarding their rights. Thus, monitoring from the
perspective of the HRF involves indicators
of structures, processes, and results.
The FNS Monitoring System in Brazil
is largely the result of great effort on
the part of the CONSEA, which formed
a working group in 2005 to develop a
methodology for monitoring Federal
budget appropriations for programs
aimed at the progressive realization
of the HRF. The process familiarized
CONSEA members with governmental
processes and budgetary language and
provided them with a clearer overview
of government actions related to FNS,
which in turn informed their proposals to government. In 2006, CONSEA
formed an “Indicators and Monitoring”
technical working group composed
of representatives of government and
civil society, including government
ministries and research institutions, to
finalize a proposal for a FNS monitoring system from the HRF perspective.44
The resulting recommendations were
incorporated into the chapter on monitoring of the 2010 National FNS Policy
legislation.
The FNS Monitoring System is based on
the principles of social participation,
transparency, fairness, publicity and access to information, and is composed
of indicators capable of identifying social, ethnic-racial, and gender inequalities and population groups that are
at greater risk of violations of the HRF
– priorities highlighted in the National
FNS Policy. The information that composes the indicators is available from
various public institutions that carry out
research and data collection, such as
the National Geography and Statistics
Institute (IBGE), the Institute of Applied
Research (IPEA), the Ministry of Health,
and the National Food Supply Company
(CONAB).
Brazil´s FNS Monitoring System fully
complies with the five principles of monitoring and accountability systems outlined by the Committee on World Food
Security (CFS, 2013, p. 47):
1. They should be human-rights
based, with particular reference to
the progressive realization of the right to adequate food;
2. They should make it possible for
decision-makers to be accountable;
43
CAISAN, 2014.
44 CONSEA, 2007
Food and Nutrition Security Governance in Brazil
35
3. They should be participatory
and include assessments that involve all stakeholders and beneficiaries, including the most vulnerable;
4. They should be simple, yet comprehensive, accurate, timely and understandable to all, with indicators
disaggregated by sex, age, region,
etc., that capture impact, process
and expected outcomes;
5. They should not duplicate existing systems, but rather build upon
and strengthen national statistical
and analytical capacities.
A Technical Committee was created within the CAISAN for monitoring the National FNS Plan composed of representatives
of nine government agencies/ministries
and one representative of the CONSEA.
A preliminary progress report presented
45 CAISAN, 2014
to the CONSEA in 2012 generated many
recommendations for improving management and monitoring of the plan.
A more comprehensive progress report on
the National FNS Plan was published by
the CAISAN in 2014, based on an analysis of the indicators in the FNS Monitoring System.45 It is the result of a decade
of participatory construction of conceptual understandings, methodologies, and
goals, and illustrates how the National
FNS Plan serves as a mechanism for monitoring FNS policies and actions in Brazil.
Another effective institutional arrangement related to FNS monitoring in Brazil
is the Secretariat of Evaluation and Information Management (Secretaria de Avaliação e Gestão de Informação - SAGI) of
the Ministry of Social Development and
Fight Against Hunger (MDS). From 2004
to 2013, SAGI oversaw 152 program eval-
2
uation studies, the majority conducted by
independent research institutions, and 44
are underway in 2014. Two meta-analyses contracted by SAGI to evaluate the
impact and relevance of the evaluation
studies found that they informed program
decisions and correction of problems, and
were used to legitimate and defend the
programs; they also served as sources for
consultation and influenced the conceptual thinking of policymakers over time.46
FNS policies and indicators at the state
and municipal levels.48
SAGI has also worked closely with the
Secretariat of FNS of the MDS and the
CAISAN to develop computer-based information systems. The public can access various interactive information tools
through the SAGI/MDS portal, including
DATASAN47, which contains information
related to the indicators in the FNS Monitoring System, and the Social Information
Report, which produces graphical outputs and reports related to the principal
This overview of the evolution of FNS monitoring and governance in Brazil highlights the
commitment of the Federal Government, the
participatory processes, and the policies and
institutional structures that were consolidated over a period of a decade and are now
written into law. In the chapter that follows,
some results of these policies are presented,
drawing on the richness and quality of the information now available due to the evolution
of FNS monitoring in Brazil
In addition to SAGI, many other government agencies and institutions produce
FNS information, in particular the Ministry
of Health, whose population surveys, like
the Demographic Health Survey (DHS) and
nutritional monitoring system (SISVAN), are
indispensable for monitoring the nutritional status of women and children.
46 DULCI, 2010; KEPPLE &
SIQUEIRA, 2012.
47 http://aplicacoes.mds.gov.br/
sagirmps/METRO/metro.php?p_
id=4
48http://aplicacoes.mds.gov.br/
sagi/RIv3/geral/index.php
Food and Nutrition Security Governance in Brazil
37
3
FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY IN BRAZIL: A MULTIDIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
The objective of the present analysis
of the state of FNS in Brazil is to examine trends over the period of a decade
and identify advances to date as well as
challenges for the decade ahead. The
information that composes the portrait
is presented according to the dimensions of FNS used in the FNS Monitoring System (Chapter 1, Figure 2). Rather
than an in-depth analysis, the portrait is
panoramic, ranging across the various
dimensions of FNS, drawing on indicators of FNS from national to the individual levels, in an effort to illustrate the
inter-relationships between the different dimensions of FNS.
Food production
It is well-known that Brazil is a country
with considerable agricultural production and diversity of foods. Nationallevel indicators show that food production and availability do not constitute
risks for the food security of the population. However, certain aspects of the
agricultural production system, such as
the concentration of land ownership,
sustainability, regional inequalities in
food production, and balance between
production of commodity crops destined for the international market and
food for domestic consumption, have
important implications for the FNS of
the population.
49 FAOSTATS, 2012.
50 USDA, 2012.
51 Cotton, peanuts, rice, beans,
mamona, corn, soybeans, oats, rye,
barley, sunflower seeds, sorghum,
wheat. and triticale.
52 IBGE, 2012.
53 Idem, ibidem.
Brazil is the world leader in production of
oranges, coffee, and sugar cane; the second largest producer of soybeans, beans,
and beef; third largest producer of pineapple and corn; fourth largest producer
of cow’s milk; and fifth largest producer
of limes and bananas.49 At the same time,
a portion of the population is food insecure, which shows that the quantity of
food produced in the country is not a de-
termining factor of hunger. The situation
is comparable in the United States, also
one of the world´s largest food producers, where nearly 15% of the population
has some level of food insecurity – 5.7%
was severely food insecure in 2012.50
Figure 6 illustrates the abundance and
the upward trends in national production
of grains and cereals and productivity
per hectare from 2002 to 2012.51 The
year 2012 marked another record year
for Brazil for the production of grains and
cereals.52
Together, soybeans, sugar cane, and corn
accounted for 57.7% of the total combined value of production of the twenty
principal agricultural products in Brazil in
2012 (Figure 7).53
Such information prompts a reflection
regarding the correct balance, from the
perspective of FNS, between production
of crops destined for the commodity and
biofuels markets and those consumed by
the population.
Availability of additional information to
guide this debate is improving, induced
in part by the demand created by the FNS
Monitoring System. Due to the commercial importance, the amount of information regarding the availability of grains
and cereals (including commodities) in
Brazil is currently much greater compared to information about other foods
consumed by the population. However,
indicators included in the FNS Monitoring System specifically emphasize the
production and availability of foods consumed by Brazilians, including healthy
foods. The ongoing process of up-dating
the indicators in the system exerts pressure to fill the gaps in the information demanded by the FNS Monitoring system.
3
Figure : Quantity produced, planted area, and value of production
of grains and cereals in Brazil – 2002-2012..
180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 2002 2003 2004 2005 Total Produc6on Value (billions R$) 2006 2007 2008 2009 Produc6on Quan6ty (million tons) 2010 2011 2012 Cul6vated Land (million ha) Source: ibGe, 2012
Figure : Participation of the 20 principal agricultural products in
the total value of production (%) in Brazil – 2012.
Soy Sugar Cane Corn Total Coffee Upland co>on Cassava Rice Beans Tabaco Orange Banana Tomato Potato Wheat Grape Pineapple Cocoa Onion Papaya Watermelon 44 Other 24,7 19,8 13,2 8,2 4,0 3,9 3,1 3,0 2,3 2,3 2,2 1,6 1,2 1,1 1,0 0,8 0,6 0,6 0,6 0,5 5,4 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Source: ibGe, 2012
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
41
Some data regarding production of
foods commonly consumed by the population is readily available. Data collected annually by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics show
a 100% increase in the production of
corn from 2002 to 2012 and stable production of rice and beans in the same
period. Production of potatoes, manioc, onions, and tomatoes also changed
little during this period. With respect
to fruits commonly consumed by the
population, the production of bananas,
oranges, and papaya remained stable
during this period, while production of
apples and watermelon increased 50%
and 40%, respectively. Production of
foods of animal origin also grew significantly from 2002 to 2012, including eggs, cow´s milk, beef, pork, and
chicken54.
The challenge that presents itself when
monitoring agricultural and livestock
production from the perspective of promoting the Human Right to Food is that
available data, which refers to quantities
produced and value of the production,
have little meaning when analyzed in
isolation, disconnected from other issues
such as food consumption, geographical distribution of food production, land
ownership, and Brazil´s participation in
the global economy.
54 IBGE, 2012.
55 Idem, 2014.
56 CONSEA, 2014a.
57 The closer the value is to 1, the
greater the concentration of land
ownership.58 IBGE, 2006.
58 IBGE, 2006.
59 CONSEA, 2014a.
60 IBGE, 2006.
61 UNSCN, 2014.
Regional inequalities in agricultural and
livestock production stand out when analyzed from the perspective of FNS. The
Midwest and South of Brazil account for
78.6% of the production of grains and
cereals.55 The South produces 75% of
the rice and 95% of the wheat grown in
the country. The Northeast is the largest
producer of manioc, although it is produced throughout the country, predominantly by small farmers. Beans are also
planted mainly by small farmers distrib-
uted throughout the country. A recent
analysis conducted by the CONSEA alerted to a worrisome reduction in varieties
of beans and rice cultivated in Brazil.56
Concentration of land ownership is a
persistent challenge in Brazil. The Gini
co-efficient for land ownership distribution57 changed little from 1985 to 2006
(0.857 and 0.854, respectively) due to
the combination of two distinct processes: redistribution of 80 million hectares
through agrarian reform programs over
the past 20 years; and increasing concentration of land ownership in areas of
recent agricultural expansion.
In 2006, farms with less than 50 hectares
corresponded to 78% of the total number of farms but occupied only 13% of
farm land area. On the other hand, farms
exceeding 500 hectares in size accounted for 2% of the total number of farms
and 56% of total farm land area.58
The demarcation and conservation of
indigenous lands and regularization of
territories belonging to slave descendent communities (quilombolas), characterized by historical as well as new obstacles, are directly linked to the FNS of
these vulnerable populations. Less than
half of indigenous lands are regularized,
and only 10% of quilombolas in Brazil
have title to their land.59
According to the Agriculture and Livestock Census of 2006, 84% of agricultural establishments were family farms;
however, these occupied only 24% of
total farm land.60 It is important to note
that family farming is responsible for
producing 70% of the food consumed
in the country.61 Figure 14 illustrates the
significant contribution of family farming
to production of a number of foods that
are important in the Brazilian diet.
3
Figure : Contribution (%) of family farming to production of specific foods in Brazil, 200.
Cassava 83 Beans 70 Pork 59 Milk 58 Poultry 51 Corn 46 Coffee 38 Paddy rice 33 Ca5le 30 Wheat 21 Soy 14 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Source: ibGe, 2006
Another sizable challenge facing Brazil is related to the sustainability of the
agricultural production models in use.
Efforts are being made to promote a
gradual agro-ecological transition. Brazil is the world leader in importation of
agricultural pesticides.62 Information is
lacking regarding organic agricultural
production and amount of farm land
dedicated to sustainable production systems; however this information gap has
been identified and expected to be filled
in the near future.
Agricultural and livestock production in
Brazil is expanding rapidly, dominated
by commodity crops with coinciding increases in agro-chemical use. Whereas
the quantity of food produced does not
constitute a risk for FNS, the growing use
of pesticides and chemical fertilizers is
an urgent problem that must be faced.
One third of the food consumed by Brazilians is contaminated with agro-chemicals, one-fourth of which are prohibited
in Brazil.63
In summary, important issues related to
food production that remain to be faced
in Brazil include the need to advance the
discussion regarding agricultural models and promotion of an agro-ecological
transition, and improve distribution of
land ownership. Despite these challenges, a very positive trend over the past
decade is the growth in the social and
economic importance of family farming.
fooD aVailability
As with information about food production, data regarding availability of
commodities in Brazil is generally more
abundant than information about the
availability of many other foods commonly consumed by the population. The
availability of foods for consumption depends on various factors, such as food
production, imports, exports, losses, and
uses for purposes other than human consumption. Food Balance Sheets, which
provide this type of information, are
calculated only for a limited number of
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
62 CARNEIRO et al., 2012.
63
CONSEA, 2014a.
43
grains and cereals. The inclusion of indicators in the FNS Monitoring System to
monitor availability of foods consumed
by the population, and ongoing efforts to
update the information, serves to reveal
the gaps in data availability and induce
the creation of mechanisms to meet this
demand.
Data from the Food Balance Sheet in
Brazil shows a progressive increase,
from 1996 to 2011, in the availability
of food energy per capita, from 2,840 to
3,287 kcal/person/day.64 From the perspective of FNS, however, what is needed is an analysis of the availability of
different types of foods. A relative lack
of data in Brazil regarding the supply of
foods consumed by the population, particularly healthy foods, makes such an
analysis difficult.
64 FAOSTAT: http://faostat.fao.
org/site/666/default.aspx.
65 CAISAN, 2014.
66 IPEA, 2014.
67 Idem, ibidem.
68 CAISAN, 2012.
69 BRASIL, 2013.
Another challenge from the perspective
of FNS is interpreting food availability
data in relation to food demand, i.e. the
availability of foods per person and the
geographic availability of foods. The
geographic distribution of food stores
and markets – and the sale of healthy
foods in stores – is another aspect that
is extremely difficult to analyze based on
available data.
Thus, there is a need for information regarding the availability and sale of foods
consumed by the population in Brazil to
inform a territorial analysis of the food
supply in relation to the demand, and
guide food supply policy aimed at promoting FNS.
Income/access and
food expenditures
Evidence related to the “Income/access”
dimension of FNS points to impressive
improvements in access to food in Brazil
over the past decade. Significant progress was made in reducing poverty and
inequality, which are key determinants of
hunger and food insecurity. The poverty
rate in Brazil fell from 24.26% in 2002
to 8.54% in 2012, and extreme poverty
was reduced from 8.81% to 3.55% in the
same period (Figure 9).65 Brazil achieved
and surpassed the Millennium Development Goal regarding poverty reduction –
both the global goal to reduce poverty by
half (compared to 1990 levels) and the
more ambitious Brazilian goal of reducing it to one-fourth the 1990 level.66
One very significant advance worth highlighting is the progressive reduction
in the rate of extreme poverty among
children under 14 years of age, with important implications for the health and
future productivity of the population.
From 1990 to 2012, the extreme poverty
rate among children aged 0 to 6 fell from
21.3% to 6%, with a similar reduction
among children aged 7 to 14 years.67
The set of policies implemented in Brazil
also contributed to decreasing inequality.
The real value of the minimum wage increased 70% from 2003 to 2013.68 Income
of the lowest population quintile increased
at three times the rate of the richest quintile from 2001 to 2012 – 6.2% compared to
2.0%, respectively (Figure 10).69
3
Figure : Evolution of poverty and extreme poverty in Brazil, 19922012.
35 31,30 30 24,68 Percentage of population 25 20 13,57 10,55 9,79 10 8,50 4,21 Extreme poverty 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1995 1996 1994 1993 0 1992 5 3,56 2012 15 Poverty Figure 1: Growth of per capita household income by quintile in
Brazil, 2001-2012.
6,2% 5,5% 4,7% 3,6% 2,0% 20% poorest 2nd quintile 3rd quintile 4th quintile 20% richest Source: PNAD/IBGE, 2013. Source: Pnad/ibGe, 2013.
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
45
The Gini co-efficient of income inequality improved steadily over the same period, reaching its lowest value in fifty years
(Figure 11).70
According to data from the National
Household Survey, the reduction in the
Gini co-efficient was greater in the rural area in relation to the national index
during the period from 2003 to 2009
– 8.3% compared to 6.5%, respectively.71 Rural poverty was reduced by
nearly 50% in the same period.72 From
2003 to 2011, the income of households of family farmers increased 52%
in real terms.73
Despite significant improvements in
income inequalities in every region of
Brazil from 2001 to 2011, regional differences remain, with the highest inequality in the Midwest and lowest in the
South. Data from the Brazilian Institute
of Geography and Statistics for the year
2010 also reveal marked racial inequalities in income, with per capita income
of households headed by Whites being
double that of households headed by
Blacks and mulattos.74
70 CAISAN, 2014; IPEA, 2014.
71 NERI et al., 2012.
72 CAISAN, 2014.
73 MDA, 2013.
74 CONSEA, 2010; IBGE Censo
Demográfico 2010.
75 IPEA, 2011 apud MALUF &
SPERANZA, 2013.
The proportion of household expenditures spent on food is another indirect
indicator of household food security.
Data from the 2008-2009 National Family Budget Survey showed that Brazilians
spent 16.1% of total household expenditures on food. However, a comparison
of household food expenditures accord-
ing to income levels reveals that the percentage rises to 28.5% in the lowest income quintile compared to 11% among
households in the highest income quintile. From 2003/2004 to 2008/2009,
the proportion of expenditures spent
on food in the poorest households decreased significantly, pointing to improvement in the food security situation
of these families (Figure 12).
Households that are obligated to spend
a larger portion of their budget on food
are also more affected by increases in
food prices. Inflation in food prices has
recently exceeded overall inflation in
Brazil. In May of 2014, the accumulated
annual variation on the National Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 6.4%, while
the CPI for food was 7.4%. In 2013, inflation in prices of food and beverages
reached an accumulated index of 14%
(DEAGRO/FIESP). According to Maluf and
Esperanza, Brazil is experiencing a process of inflation in food prices driven by
various factors, including the following:
high international prices of commodities; increases and improved distribution
of income in the population; changes in
price regulation; and currency exchange
rates.75 As these authors observe, the impact of inflation in food prices is greater
for families near the poverty line and
those participating in income transfer programs, leading to changes in the
household budget that negatively affect
the quantity and quality of the food consumed.
3
Figure 11: Gini co-efficient of income inequality in Brazil, 2001-2012.
0,558 0,558 0,553 0,545 0,548 0,535 0,538 0,528 0,532 0,528 0,521 0,513 0,518 0,509 0,508 0,501 0,5 0,498 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2011 2012 Source: Pnad/ibGe.
note: exclusive information from households without declaration of household income.
Figure 12: Food expenditures as a percentage of total household
expenditures according to income quintile - Brazil, 2003/2004 and
2008/2009.
40,0 35,0 30,0 34,4 28,5 25,0 27,0 24,0 20,0 22,7 20,3 17,6 17,0 15,0 11,1 11,0 10,0 5,0 0,0 1 2 3 2003 4 5 2009 Source: ibGe, 2010b
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
47
Access to adequate
food
Quantity and quality of food consumed
constitute dimensions of household
food security measured by the Brazilian
Food Insecurity Scale. Households are
classified into four categories: food secure; mildly food insecure (characterized
by uncertainty regarding ability to obtain
food); moderately food insecure (characterized by changes in eating patterns that
affect mainly the quality of the diet, with
some reduction in quantity consumed);
and severely food insecure (a situation of
eating less food due to lack of resources;
experiencing hunger and having no food
to eat). From 2004 to 2009, the prevalence of severe food insecurity in Brazil
decreased significantly, 6.9% to 5% of
households, and moderate food insecurity was reduced from 9.9% to 6.5% of
households. The reduction in moderate
and severe food insecurity was greater
among low income households.76 New
population estimates will be available at
the end of 2014.
76 IBGE, 2010c.
77 IBGE, 2010c.
78 IBGE, 2010c.
79 IBGE, 2010a.
However, the data reveal persistent regional inequalities as well as racial inequalities in household food security.
The prevalence of severe food insecurity in the Brazilian North and Northeast
exceeded 9.0% in 2009, compared to
the prevalence of 2.9% and 2.1% in
the South and Southeast, respectively.
With respect to race, the prevalence of
severe food insecurity in households
headed by Blacks was three times that
of households headed by Whites. Children and adolescents under 17 years
of age were also more affected by
food insecurity compared to other age
groups.77
Another segment of the population that
is more affected by food insecurity is rural households, with a prevalence of severe food insecurity of 7% compared to
4.6% of urban households in 2009. On
the other hand, the reduction in moderate and severe food insecurity combined
in rural areas from 2004 to 2009 was significant, from 23.5% to 15.6%.78
As can be observed in Figure 13, there is
a close association between income level
and household food security. Among extremely poor households (¼ of a minimum
monthly salary per person), the prevalence
of severe and moderate food insecurity
in 2009 was 40%. The prevalence was
4.8% among households with income
of 1-2 minimum salaries per person, and
only 1.1% among those households that
reported 2-3 monthly salaries per person.
This means households with incomes
below ¼ of one monthly minimum salary per person are at much higher risk
of poor dietary quality and inadequate
quantity of food, and that the risk is
greatly improved even with relatively
moderate increases in income - above
two monthly minimum salaries per person. Food acquisition data from the National Family Budget Survey confirm this
association, showing significantly lower
acquisition of healthy foods, such as
fruits, vegetables, meat, and milk, among
the lowest income class compared to the
highest income class (Figure 14). The
quantity of fruits acquired (in kg/person/year) in lower income households
was one fourth the quantity acquired by
the higher income households in 2009.
For vegetables, the proportion was onethird, and for milk and meat, approximately half.79
3
Figure 13: Proportion (%) of food secure households and households with moderate or severe food insecurity according to mean
per capita income levels, Brazil, 2009.
100 91,7 90 80,7 80 66,2 70 60 48,3 50 40 30 40,1 30,6 22,2 20 11,4 10 0 Up to 1/4 4,8 More than 1/4 up to 1/2 More than 1/2 up to 1 Food Security More than 1 up to 2 1,1 More than 2 up to 3 Moderate and Severe Food Insecurity Figure 14: Annual per capita acquisition of selected foods (Kg/person/year) – comparison of highest and lowest income classes, Brazil,
2003/2004 and 2008/2009.
Lowest income class – 2002/3* Highest income class – 2002/3** Lowest income class – 2008/9* Highest income class – 2008/9** 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Rice Beans Source: IBGE, 2004 e 2010a Vegetables Fruit Meat Cow's milk Non-­‐alcoholic Sugars, (pasteurized beverages* sweets and and fresh) confecNonery * ultil 2x minimum wage; **>15x minimum wage; *** sodas, energy drinks, and powdered and bottled juices
Source: ibGe, 2004 e 2010a
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
49
The data also reveals some healthier
aspects of food acquisition in poorer
households compared to wealthier
households, such as much lower consumption of soda pop, energy drinks and
powdered juice drinks, and higher acquisition of rice and beans.80
Similar relationships between dietary
quality and income level were observed
in food consumption data collected in
the 2008/2009 National Family Budget
Survey. It was found that the poorest
quartile of the population consumed
more manioc flour, rice, and beans and
less salad and fruits than the wealthier
quartile. It was also observed that consumption of foods like pizza, salty snack
foods, and soda pop tended to increase
with increasing household income.81
Results from the National Family Budget
Survey regarding food acquisition in Brazilian households converge with those related to food consumption, both of which
reveal unhealthy trends in eating patterns
of the Brazilian population as a whole.
While consumption of rice and beans decreased from 2002/2003 to 2008/2009,
the consumption of cookies, soda-pop,
and ready-to-eat meals increased. Consumption of fruits and vegetables is far
below recommended levels. Food consumption data reveals that the traditional
eating pattern based on rice, beans, and
meat, is still evident, accompanied by notable increases in consumption of foods
rich in sugar, salt, and fat.82
80 Idem, ibidem.
81 Idem, 2010d.
82 IBGE, 2010d
83 BORTOLINI et al., 2012.
84 MARTINS et al., 2013.
85 IBGE, 2010b.
Analyses of child food consumption collected in the 2006/2007 Demographic
Health Survey reveal similar unhealthy
trends in food habits among children
aged 6 months to 5 years, with daily consumption of various healthy foods far
below recommendations and high consumption of many unhealthy foods.83
The elevated consumption of foods rich
in sugars, salt, and fat in the Brazilian
population is a reflection of a notable
increase in consumption of processed
and ultra-processed foods and beverages over the past decade in Brazil. An
analysis of National Family Budget Survey data carried out by Martins, et al,
revealed an increase in consumption of
ultra-processed foods from 20.8% to
25.4% of total kcalories consumed between 2002/2003 and 2008/2009 – an
increase that was observed across all income classes.84
Another notable trend in Brazilian eating habits is an increase in the amount
of food being consumed outside the
home. The portion of food expenditures
outside the home increased from 24% in
2002/2003 to 30.1% in 2008/2009. According to 2008/2009 Household Family
Budget Survey data, the amount of food
consumed outside the home increased
progressively with rising income levels.
While the lowest income class consumed
12% of total food energy outside the
home, the percentage was 22.3% among
the highest income group.85
The trends in the food habits and dietary
quality in Brazil summarized above have
impacts on the health and nutrition of
the population which are clearly evidenced in national population surveys,
as discussed in the following section.
Health and access to
health services
FNS indicators pertaining to the dimension “health and access to health services”
range from nutritional status indicators to
information about access to basic sanitation and water. Food safety also belongs
to this dimension of the FNS Monitoring
System, including information about agri-
3
cultural pesticide residues in foods, which
was already addressed in the discussion
about agro-chemical use in Brazil.
Trends in the nutritional status of the
population clearly show the nutrition
transition occurring in Brazil over the
past two decades, characterized by reduced levels of under-nutrition (as evidenced by reductions in stunting and
wasting in the population) and increases
in overweight and obesity.
From 1974/1975 to 2008/2009, the prevalence of overweight and obesity nearly
doubled among women and tripled among
men. Considering obesity alone, the increase was four-fold for men and more
than two-fold for women (Figure 15).
The prevalence of excess weight (overweight and obesity combined) is high
among all income groups, however the
prevalence tends to increase as income
level rises. Among men in the lowest income quintile, the prevalence of excess
weight in 2008/2009 was 36.9%, compared to 61.8% among men in the high-
est income quintile. The difference was
smaller for women – 45% and 47.4%,
respectively. It is worth noting that the
prevalence of excess weight is growing
faster in the lowest income quintile for
both men and women.
It is also important to note that residents
of lower income households may suffer
from overweight at the same time they
are faced with problems with food access. Among participants in the Bolsa
Família income transfer program in 2012,
nearly half of the women and 18.8% of
adolescents were overweight.86
Beginning from 5 years of age, one observes an accelerated increase in overweight and obesity in all age groups in
Brazil. The prevalence of excess weight
increased almost three-fold in the last 20
years among adolescents and children
aged 5 to 9. Close to one-third of boys
and girls aged 5 to 9 were overweight or
obese in 2008/2009 (Figure 16). At the
same time, chronic malnutrition (stunting) in this age group was reduced by
half from 1989 to 2008/2009.
Figure 15: Prevalence of weight deficit, excess weight (overweight
and obesity combined) and obesity in adult males and females (20
years or older) in Brazil for the periods 1974/1975, 1989, 2002/2003,
and 2008/2009.
Source: IBGE, 2010e.
86 CONSEA, 2014a.
Food and Nutrition Security in Brazil:
a multi-dimensional portrait
51
Figure 1: Evolution in anthropometric indicators in boys and girls
aged 5 to 9 years in Brazil during the periods 1974/1975, 1989 and
2008/2009.
Source: ibGe, 2010e.
Figure 1: Prevalence of low weight-for-age among children up to 5
years of age in Brazil, 1989 and 200.
10 9 9,2 1996 2006 8 7 6 5 3,7 4 4,2 3 1,8 2 1 0 20% poorest Brazil 1,6 1,2 20% richest Source: IPEA, 2014. Source: iPea, 2014.
87 IPEA, 2014.
88 Brazilian Ministry of Health,
2009.
A progressive and significant reduction
in child malnutrition occurred in Brazil
in two decades, such that Brazil achieved
and surpassed the Millennium Development Goal for reducing hunger.87 The
prevalence of low weight-for-age in children up to 5 years of age fell from 4.2%
in 1996 to 1.8% in 2006.88 The decrease
was greater among the poorest 20%,
from 9.2% to 3.7%, contributing to ame-
lioration of inequalities with respect to
this indicator of child nutritional status
(Figure 17).
The prevalence of stunting (low heightfor-age) in children up to 5 years of age
was also reduced by half between 1996
and 2006, from 13.4% to 6.7%, with a
significantly greater decrease among the
poorest 20%, as well (Figure 18).
3
Figure 1: Prevalence of stunting (low height-for-age) among children up to 5 years of age in Brazil, 1989 and 200.
35 30 30,1 1996 2006 25 20 13,4 15 9,9
10 6,7
5 0 20% poorest
Brazil
5,3 3,9
20% richest
Source: IPEA, 2014. Source: iPea, 2014
Another very positive trend in infant nutrition in Brazil – which likely contributed
to the reduction in child malnutrition – is
an increasing prevalence in breastfeeding. Of all the children that participated
in the 2006 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) in Brazil, 95% had been breastfed upon birth, and 42.9% had initiated
breastfeeding in the first hour after birth
– a 30% increase in 10 years. The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding of infants under four months of age increased
from 26.4% to 48.2% in the same period.89 In the year preceding the interview,
91% of infants under 6 months of age,
61.5% of children aged 6 to 12 months,
and 34.8% of children 13 to 24 months
had consumed breast milk.90
Despite this progress, the evidence
points to the need to reinforce promotion of breastfeeding and improve complementary feeding practices of children
under two years of age. Data collected
in the 2006 DHS pointed to inappropriately early introduction of milk other
than breast milk, and low consumption of
fruits, vegetables, and meat among children aged 6 to 23 months. An analysis
of 2006 DHS data conducted by Borto-
lini, et al, reveals that 62.4% of children
younger than 6 months of age, and 74%
of children aged 6 to 12 months had
consumed cow´s milk, which is not recommended for children younger than 12
months.91
The effects of inadequate consumption of
fruits, vegetables, and meat among children, and the high consumption of less
healthy foods, are reflected in biochemical indicators of child nutritional status.
The prevalence of iron deficiency anemia
among children aged 0 to 5 in Brazil was
found to be 20.9% in the 2006 DHS, and
17.4% were deficient in Vitamin A. The
prevalence of iron deficiency was found
to be higher among children and women
in the Northeast region of Brazil (25.5%
and 39.1%, respectively), and Vitamin
A deficiency was more prevalent in the
Northeast, Midwest and Southeast.92
Another extremely important indicator
of health that has shown progressive
improvement over the past decade in
Brazil, reflecting important advances
in access to health services and to adequate food, is the infant mortality rate
(deaths per 1000 births in children unFOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN BRAZIL:
A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL PORTRAIT
89 MINISTÉRIO DA SAÚDE, 2009.
90
Idem, ibidem.
91 BORTOLINI et al., 2013.
92 MINISTÉRIO DA SAÚDE, 2009.
53
der one year of age). Brazil achieved
the Millennium Development goal of
reducing infant mortality by two-thirds
between 1990 and 2015 (Figure 19).
With a reduction in the infant mortality rate from 26.1 to 15.7% between
2001 and 2011, Brazil´s classification
with respect to infant mortality levels
went from “medium” (20 to 49 deaths
per 1000) to “low” (below 20). The
infant mortality rate fell in all regions
of Brazil, with a sharper reduction in
the Northeast (an average of 6.6% per
year).93
The advances in maternal and child health
and nutrition have not yet reached all vulnerable populations in Brazil, however,
including the indigenous population. Although a 56.1% reduction was observed
from 2000 to 2009, the infant mortality
rate in the indigenous population in Brazil
is still much higher in relation to the general population (Figure 20).94
FigurA 1: Infant mortality rate in Brazil 2001-2011 (per 1000 live births).
Source: brazil, 2013.
Figure 2: Infant mortality rate in the indigenous population, Brazil
2000-2009.
80 75 70 60 57 56 54 47 50 53 49 47 44 42 40 30 20 10 0 93 BRASIL, 2013.
94 CAISAN, 2014.
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: deSai, FUnaSa, mS, 2010
3
The National Indigenous Health and Nutrition Survey of 2008-2009 revealed that
more than half of indigenous children aged
6 months to 5 years were affected by iron
deficiency anemia. The prevalence was
80% among children 6 to 11 months of
age, pointing to problems in the vulnerable
stage of introducing complementary foods.
In the same survey, it was found that 26%
of indigenous children under five years of
age were stunted (low height-for-age), and
data from 2012 indicated that 15% had
low weight-for-age – prevalence levels
considerably higher than those of the general population.95
Another population group that has remained at the margins of the progress
observed nationally in Brazil is the
quilombolas, largely rural communities
of slave descendants.
In a study conducted in 2013 of quilombola communities throughout Brazil, it
was found that 18.7% of the children
under 5 years of age were stunted (low
height-for-age). The percentage with low
weight-for-age was close to 6%. Only
15% of households had adequate sewage treatment, 44% had running water,
and 22.5% relied on rivers, lakes, and
ponds for drinking water. 96
On the other hand, the study revealed
that some important basic services are
reaching this vulnerable population:
75% receive frequent visits from community health agents, 92% have access
to Social Assistance Reference Centers,
and two thirds participate in the Bolsa
Família income transfer program.97
The situation of basic sanitation and access
to water among the quilombolas contrasts
with advances achieved in the general population. Access to basic sanitation services
increased from 66.7% to 77.2% between
2001 and 2011 in Brazil, and access to running water was extended to 84.6% of the
population in the same period.98 However,
access to these service is still very unequal
among income groups – 67.5% of the extremely poor have access to running water
compared to 93.6% of wealthier Brazilians, and only half of the extremely poor
have access to basic sanitation compared
to 91.2% of upper income households. It
is worth noting, however, that the increase
in access has been significantly greater for
poorer Brazilians.99
Regional and rural-urban differences in
access to basic sanitation and water also
persist. The percentage of households
in the North and Northeast regions with
access to basic sanitation is 57.1% and
61.1%, respectively, compared to 83.5%
and 90.8% in the South and Southeast.
While only 55.9% of households in the
North have access to running water, the
situation is significantly better in the
South, Southeast and Northeast - 86.5%,
91.1% and 79.9%, respectively.
Urban-rural differences in access are also
significant. Two thirds of the rural population does not have access to these services, whereas in the urban area, 93.4%
have access to running water and 83.8%
have access to sewer systems.100
Thus, the data provide ample evidence
that the policies aimed at improving
access to these services which are so
important for the health and FNS of
the population resulted in significant,
well-targeted improvements, but that inequalities persist.
95 CAISAN, 2014.
96 MDS, 2013
97 Idem, ibidem.
98 BRASIL, 2013.
99 IPEA, 2014.
100 Idem, ibidem.
Food and Nutrition Security in Brazil:
a multi-dimensional portrait
55
Advances and challenges
The portrait presented reveals that Brazil is on the right track, with impressive
advances relative to the basic causes
of hunger and food insecurity, such
as reductions in poverty and inequality and increases in access to public
services, through policies aimed at
social protection, income generation,
and strengthening of family farming.
Regional inequalities persist, but significant progress has been made in the
rural areas and in the poor regions of
Brazil. The reductions in household
food insecurity and child malnutrition
are a reflection of these advances.
The remaining challenges will not be
easy to face, as they are rooted in historical inequalities and a food system
imbedded in an economic system that
favors the predominance of the market
and disregard for the environment. At
the same time, Brazil has shown that
it is possible to change historical inequalities. The greatest challenges
– addressing the chronic vulnerability
of the traditional populations, changing unhealthy trends in eating habits,
implementing food supply policies to
control inflation of food prices, and
promoting an agro-ecological transition
– will demand tremendous political will
and negotiation of interests through
the inter-sectoral, participatory processes that have been established and
proved effective over the past decade.
The challenges revealed based on the
present analysis are not unknown to
FNS policy makers in Brazil. They are
challenges that have already been
identified and debated in the CONSEA
and the CAISAN, which is strong evidence that the FNS Monitoring System
is fulfilling its role of informing policy.
3
Food and Nutrition Security in Brazil:
a multi-dimensional portrait
57
4
CRITICAL AND EMERGING
AGENDAS FOR FOOD
AND NUTRITION SECURITY
MONITORING IN BRAZIL
The advances achieved over a period
of a decade with respect to FNS governance in Brazil, and the resulting positive impacts, are many. The portrait presented here, based on a broad array of
indicators related to the varied dimensions of FNS, shows that the country is
succeeding in the fight against hunger
and poverty and effectively promoting
the progressive realization of the Human Right to Food. The capacities and
the governmental structures that have
been built contribute to ensuring that
the country will continue to advance,
and that the challenges – the new as
well as the persistent – can be faced.
One key mechanism of FNS governance
that has been built and consolidated
over the past decade is the FNS Monitoring System, where information from
diverse sectors is integrated into a single system to monitor and inform FNS
policies in the country. The FNS Monitoring System was developed through
a process involving the participation of
various stakeholders from diverse sectors, from civil society as well as the
government, and has helped to promote
a multi-sectoral understanding of the
concept of FNS. It constitutes a powerful tool for informing analyses of the
inter-relations among the different dimensions of FNS and for promoting the
perspective of the Right to Food.
101 CONSEA, 2014b; CAISAN, 2014.
The portrait of the state of FNS in Brazil presented here points to impressive advances as well as various challenges, some that are persistent and
historical, and others that have more
recently emerged onto the scene.
The conclusions converge with progress reports produced recently by
the CONSEA and the CAISAN.101 Some
critical and emergent agendas identi-
fied based on the present analysis are
summarized below.
The situation of food and
nutrition insecurity that
continues to affect part of
the population
In spite of the significant advances,
5% of households in Brazil were still
affected by severe food insecurity in
2009. Various indicators point to the
chronic vulnerability of some population groups, including the indigenous
people and quilombolas.
Although
the government of Brazil is working to
reach these groups with social protection programs and policies aimed at
addressing the underlying causes of
food and nutrition insecurity specific
to their particular situation, these traditional communities continue to have
the worst indices of health, nutrition,
and access to services.
Land distribution and documentation
One of the basic determinants of FNS
which constitutes an historical and persistent challenge in Brazil is access to
land. Intensification of agrarian reform,
and demarcation and regularization
of indigenous lands and of other traditional peoples, constitute structural
mechanisms to address hunger and
inequalities among these vulnerable
populations. Such processes are slowmoving and characterized by conflict.
The expectation is that the National
Sustainable Development Plan for Traditional Peoples and Communities of African Descent, launched in 2007, and the
National Territorial and Environmental
Management Plan for Indigenous Lands,
instituted in 2012, will contribute to
moving this agenda forward.
4
Seeking a balance between
agricultural production
models from the perspective
of food and nutrition security
The tension between agriculture models
based on intensive use of agro-chemicals and more sustainable agro-ecological models is appreciable in Brazil as
well as at the international level. Currently there is political will to promote a
gradual agro-ecological transition in Brazil, and some policies for this are already
in place. But from a FNS perspective,
goals and mechanisms are needed to
promote a balance between production
of crops for the commodity market, and
smaller-scale agriculture aimed at producing food for domestic consumption,
with diminishing dependence on agrochemicals that are harmful for humans
and the environment.
Food supply
The need for a national food supply policy
has been on the agenda in the CONSEA
and the CAISAN. According to the CONSEA, “food supply policy encompasses
the diverse set of activities that affect
the production and consumption of food,
constituting a field of strategic action for
coordinating the promotion of socially equitable, environmentally sustainable, and
culturally appropriate production models, and for improving access to enough
healthy food.”102 It constitutes a theme
that integrates the various dimensions of
FNS and highlights the links between food
production and consumption - a theme
that cuts across the other critical and
emerging agendas. It implies a larger role
for government in the regulation of food
production, distribution, commercialization, and consumption of foods, aimed at
promoting food sovereignty, controlling
food price inflation and volatility, and improving access to safe and healthy foods.
A proposal for national food policy legislation has already been developed by the
CAISAN based on recommendations from
the CONSEA.
Access to water
The question of access to water was not
addressed adequately in the present report, particularly in light of its importance
to FNS and the challenges that loom on
the horizon as a result of climate change.
From the perspective of universal access
to water, it is necessary to consider not
only the issue of adequate water for human consumption, but also for food production. While public investments have
contributed to significant improvements
in access to water in Brazil, inequalities in
access persist in relation to region, urbanrural areas, ethnicity, and income levels.
Obesity prevention and promotion of healthy eating
National-level managers of FNS policies
in Brazil are focusing increasing attention
on ways to more effectively address the
growing prevalence of overweight and
obesity and improve the dietary quality
of the Brazilian population through coordinated inter-sectoral actions. These are
critical agendas that are relevant for many
countries in the world that are, like Brazil,
undergoing the nutrition transition.
As discussed in Chapter 1, actions that
contribute to addressing the growing
prevalence of overweight and obesity
include the following: 1) nutrition education; 2) increasing the supply of and
access to healthy foods; 3) regulating
marketing of foods high in sugar and
fat; 4) creating environments that promote healthy eating; 5) guaranteeing adequate food during pregnancy and early
childhood; and 6) decreasing household
and individual food insecurity that leads
to psychosocial stress.
Critical and emerging agendas for Food and
Nutrition Security monitoring in Brazil
102 CONSEA, 2014a, p.21 (translated by the autor).
61
In 2011, with the participation of the
CONSEA and the Pan-American Health
Organization, the CAISAN undertook
the development of the Intersectoral
Strategy to Control and Prevent Obesity. Designed to contribute to achieving the goals of the National Non-Communicable Chronic Disease Prevention
Plan, launched by the Ministry of Health
in the same year, the objectives of the
obesity prevention strategy include the
following:
• Improve food consumption patterns
of the Brazilian population aiming to
reverse the growing prevalence of
overweight and obesity;
• Promote the value of regional foods
and traditional dishes and increase
the availability of enough healthy
foods
• Decrease the consumption of processed and energy-dense foods and
foods high in sugars, fat, and sodium,
and promote the consumption of
whole grain foods, beans, nuts, fruits,
vegetables, and fish;
• Promote physical activity, especially in work environments, safe urban
environments, and schools during all
phases of life.
112 CONSEA, 2014a, p.21.
A new progress report on the 20122015 National FNS Plan being produced
by the CAISAN cites implementation of
this strategy as an important challenge,
and points to the need for instruments
to regulate food marketing and food
labeling, essential to overcoming the
chronic problem of poor nutrition.
Implications for Food
and Nutrition Security
Monitoring
It is worth noting that the inequalities and
challenges cited here were made evident
based on indicators that compose the FNS
Monitoring System, which was purposefully created to enable the identification
of social, ethnic/racial, and gender inequalities and of groups at risk of violation of their Human Right to Food – priorities defined in the National FNS Policy.
It is a characteristic that distinguishes the
FNS Monitoring System in Brazil.
Monitoring of the critical and emerging
agendas identified above may be aided
by the inclusion of new indicators. For
example, some of the following indicators have the potential to contribute to
the understanding and monitoring of the
dynamics behind the increase in overweight and obesity, as well as the chronic
diseases associated with them:
• Insertion of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale in surveys of food consumption and nutritional status (e.g. anthropometry) as well as agriculture surveys;
• Prevalence of diabetes and of hypertension;
• Indicators of the production, availability, and consumption of healthy
foods (such as fruits and vegetables);
• Indicators of consumption of processed and ultra-processed foods;
• Indicators aimed at monitoring food
industry practices, including marketing;
4
• Indicators of physical activity levels;
Closing remarks
• Information about policies and environments that promote physical activity;
FNS monitoring has effectively contributed to informing FNS policies in Brazil
over the past decade and is undergoing
continual refinement. The process that
characterized the development of the
FNS Monitoring System in Brazil, with
ample participation from civil society
and diverse stakeholders, constitutes a
successful example that deserves dissemination, much as programs like the
Bolsa Família income transfer program,
and the Family Farming Food Procurement Program, are being disseminated
in other countries around the world. The
process was as important as the result,
and can serve as an example to contribute to the international discussion
regarding monitoring of the Post-2015
Development Agenda.
• Local-level food indicators:103
• Percent of households who
cannot afford a balanced diet;
• Cost of healthy diets;
• Relative prices of different food
groups;
• Geographical distribution of
food stores;
• Community-level
diversity.
production
It is worth noting that many of the above
indicators are also relevant for monitoring food supply policies and aspects of
agricultural production. In this way, the
inter-relationships among the critical
and emerging agendas, as well as the
underlying causes that are common to
many of them, become evident.
The progress reports on the 2012/2015
National FNS Plan carried out periodically by the CAISAN, based on indicators
that compose the FNS Monitoring System, reveal that the critical and emerging agendas identified here are already
on the agenda.104 This is evidence that
the FNS Monitoring System continues to
inform policy and participatory debate.
The ongoing process of updating information in the system, which leads to the
identification of gaps and mechanisms to
fill them, is serving to promote the availability of information needed to monitor
the persistent challenges and emerging
agendas related to FNS.
The history of Food and Nutrition Security in Brazil is as broad and multi-dimensional as the concept itself. A piece of
the story was recorded here: a description of the process that resulted in the
consolidation and institutionalization of
FNS governance structures over the past
decade, and ample evidence of the advances that resulted.
Given the commitment of the Federal
Government to FNS monitoring, and the
institutionalized structures in place that
promote social and intersectoral participation, Brazil appears well-positioned
to protect the advances achieved and
to monitor the policies aimed at addressing the challenges of the coming
decade. The expectation is that another analysis of the state of FNS in Brazil
ten years from now will reveal progress
with respect to the critical and emerging
agendas for FNS, based on ample documented evidence.
Critical and emerging agendas for Food and
Nutrition Security monitoring in Brazil
103 Herforth, 2014.
104 CAISAN, 2014.
63
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