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Pakistan's Silent Crisis: Hunger Amidst Plenty
28 Feb
Summary
- Millions struggle for balanced diets despite food availability.
- Diabetes prevalence is highest globally, affecting 34.5 million.
- Policy shift needed from food security to food systems transformation.
Pakistan is grappling with a significant nutritional crisis, where abundant grains and sugar in diets leave many undernourished and contribute to a surge in diabetes. The country, despite sufficient food production, struggles with accessibility to balanced meals, impacting a large portion of its population.
Recent analyses highlight that 60.3% of Pakistanis cannot afford a healthy diet, with notable deficiencies in fruits, vegetables, and pulses. This situation fuels a global high prevalence of adult diabetes, affecting an estimated 34.5 million individuals.
The existing food policy prioritizes staple food availability, neglecting the broader system of resource allocation, production, and dietary choices. This narrow focus hinders transformation towards a system that supports healthy eating.
Transforming Pakistan's food system requires immediate action: incentivizing diverse crop production, reducing significant food loss and waste, building public awareness for healthy diets, and utilizing fiscal policies like taxation and subsidies to promote healthier food choices. Such a shift is vital for national health and resilience.
