Book launch: COVID-19 and global food security - what have we learned so far?

This post is based on remarks delivered during the Aug. 4 launch event for the new IFPRI book, COVID-19 and Global Food Security. John McDermott, Director of the IFPRI-led CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH), is co-editor of the book.

COVID-19 is a combination crisis, affecting health and economics. Its widespread impacts are reflected in the multiple types of policy responses implemented to address it, ranging across health, social, food and agriculture, education, economics and business sectors.

As IFPRI Director General Johan Swinnen, co-editor of COVID-19 and Global Food Security, noted during the event, the impact of the pandemic on food and nutrition security is a result of two factors: A large economic recession and major disruptions of food systems.