As 2030 approaches, the world remains far off track from achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2) – end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, progress had stalled, with food security already presenting signs of deterioration, and nutrition indicators showing little improvement. The pandemic and subsequent food price increases further exacerbated these trends, pushing global undernourishment well above pre-pandemic levels. While updated global estimates point to signs of improvement in recent years, global levels of hunger and food insecurity remain far above those recorded when the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was launched in 2015.
As global economies began recovering from the pandemic and its disruptions, a series of cascading challenges unravelled, driving up food price inflation. The post-pandemic surge in demand, spurred by aggressive fiscal relief measures, was soon followed by supply-side pressures from geopolitical disruptions such as the war in Ukraine, and trade route disturbances, exacerbated by different extreme events. Together, these factors have led to international food price increases comparable to those seen in historical food crises such as in those of 1973 to 1974 and 2007 to 2008, once again placing food security and nutrition at the forefront of the global policy agenda.
Rising food prices disproportionately affect low-income households, which allocate a significant share of their income to food. While international agricultural commodity prices gradually returned to lower levels towards the end of 2022, domestic food price inflation remains a problem in several countries. Without proportional increases in income, higher prices erode purchasing power, not only threatening food security and nutritional outcomes but jeopardizing the achievement of multiple SDGs beyond Zero Hunger (SDG 2), such as No Poverty (SDG 1) and Good Health and Well-being (SDG 3). Beyond the most food-insecure people, high food price inflation has reverberated through the whole social system, increasing people’s frustration and putting pressure on policymakers around the globe. In addition, as food makes up a significant share of the consumer price index in most economies, rising food price inflation has become a growing concern for many central banks, which have had to address broader inflationary pressures. Yet, comprehensive analyses of the pass-through effects of rising commodity prices on food price inflation and their impact on food security and nutrition – including through various food groups across selected countries – remain scarce. Similarly, evaluating policy responses and identifying the most effective interventions to limit the negative impacts of food price inflation on vulnerable populations are essential for developing targeted and evidence-based strategies for enhancing resilience and promoting food security.
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025 analyses the root causes of recent food price inflation and its impact on global food security and nutrition. It specifically investigates how rising food prices have affected consumers’ disposable income and their ability to access food. The report also explores the effects of inflation across different food groups and examines changes in the affordability of healthy diets. Additionally, it highlights successful policy responses at the country level, identifying practical solutions to address the twin challenges of rising food prices and increasing levels of food insecurity and malnutrition.
This 2025 edition provides policymakers with a suite of policies necessary for addressing food price inflation while advancing global progress towards ending hunger, food insecurity and all forms of malnutrition, and making healthy diets affordable for all.
