One in eight people around the world go to bed hungry each night, despite the fact that there is more than enough for food everyone. The statistics form part of Oxfam’s “Good Enough To Eat” index, which was released this week and details the best and worst places to eat around. The findings are based on levels or undernourishment across the globe, measured by quantities and access to food, the price of food, quality and nutrition levels.
Leading the pack was The Netherlands, hailed by Oxfam as the healthiest country in the world. Attributed in part to the country’s emphasis on vegetables and dairy products as well as reasonable food prices, the Dutch diet saw the country take the top spot on the list.
The Oxfam index was predominantly led by European countries, with France and Switzerland coming in at second place, followed by Austria, Denmark, Belgium and Sweden tying for third.
Australia was the first non-European country to make the top 8, alongside Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg and Portugal, even though these countries didn’t score well in other parts of the study (Australia also rated highest in the obesity category, with 27 per cent of Australians classified as obese).
Surprising absences were noted from the UK, Canada and the U.S.
At the bottom of the list was Chad, followed by Ethiopia and Angola. Angola suffers the highest level of food price volatility, according to the Oxfam report, besides Zimbabwe. In these countries, a massive 75 per cent of incomes are spent on food.
The “Good Enough To Eat” index aims to highlight the failings of the global food system, calling for critical action to take place. The food system is repeatedly referred to as “broken” throughout the report, with concerns such as climate change, government regulation of food prices and quality, and greater agricultural investment raised as focus areas to ensure improvement.
