1. Food Security assessment and the link with nutrition
This module will address first Food Security as a concept and subsequently assessment. The duration is approx. 35 min.
Module 9
27-Mar-17

2. Learning Objectives Be familiar with the concept of food security
Understand basic principles of a food security assessment
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3. Undernutrition Inadequate food intake Disease Underlying causes
Immediate causes
Basic causes
Formal and informal infrastructure/ political ideology/resources
Inadequate food intake
Poor Public Health
Household food insecurity
Disease
Undernutrition
Poor social and care practices
Point out the specific part in the conceptual framework where food security plays a role.
Source: UNICEF conceptual framework

4. I am food secure because...
….Complete this sentence….
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5. Definition of food security
A person, household or community, nation or region is food secure when all members at all times have physical and economic access to buy, produce, obtain or consume sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for a healthy and active life.
Often a shorter version of the definition is used: Food security refers to access by all people at all times to sufficient, safe and nutritious food for a healthy and active life
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6. What does this mean in practice?
What would you suggest to measure if you would like to know whether people are indeed food secure?
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7. Three pillars of food security
Availability of food
food production, food imports, etc
Access to food
household food production and reserves,
family income, solidarity mechanisms,
barter, etc
Utilization of food
health situation (diarrhoea, malaria,
AIDS), food storage and cooking
practices, fuel, age related needs, etc
Availability: Sufficient quantities of appropriate food are physically available.
Access - Income or other resources are adequate to obtain sufficient and appropriate food. The main focus here is on the economic access of households to food. Utilization - Food is properly used (food processing and storage practices, adequate knowledge and application of nutrition and child care principles, and adequate health and sanitation services). Also includes biological use, which is linked to a person’s health.
Often forgotten but also relevant is access to preparation facilities: i.e. fuel, cooking utensils, etc (for example: in flooded areas fuel to cook might be needed)
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8. Three pillars of food security
Regional/local
Availability of food
food production, food imports, etc
Access to food
household food production and reserves,
family income, solidarity mechanisms,
barter, etc
Utilization of food
health situation (diarrhoea, malaria, AIDS),
food storage and cooking practices, fuel, age
related needs, etc
Household
Individual
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9. Link the following situations with availability/access/utilisation of food
Quiz
A severe drought can reduce a harvest or kill livestock.  
Pipeline break in food assistance  
High market prices of important food products    
Shortage of seeds or fertilisers
Lack of nutritional knowledge causes people to have an inadequate diet or cause extensive vitamin loss during preparation.
A broken bridge can hamper access to food or trade markets.
Some strong cultural beliefs prevent people from eating certain healthy food products    
 In the following 2 slides some situations are given. For each the participants should say in what way the situation can affect the three pillars of food security
There are more situations in the notes here below than on the slides; the selection can be adjusted to the context the participants work.
Inadequate food availability Inadequate food access Inadequate food utilization
1. A severe drought can reduce a harvest or kill livestock. X (x)  
2. Pipeline break in food aid X (x)  
3. High market prices of important food products   X  
4. Shortage of seeds or fertilisers X can reduce yields    
5. Outbreak of Cholera     x
6.  Lack of nutritional knowledge causes people to have an
inadequate diet or cause extensive vitamin loss during preparation.    x
7. A broken bridge can hamper access to food or trade markets. x    
8. Lack of education and skills reduces job opportunities (and therefore reduces family income).  x  
9. Some strong cultural beliefs prevent people from eating certain healthy food products   x
10. High medical fees or funeral costs can reduce household budget for food.   x  
11. War or conflict can prevent food import to certain regions. X    
12. Unsafe drinking water can cause chronic diarrhoea and result in decreased absorption of nutrients.     X
13. Low livestock prices can reduce cash availability to purchase food.   X  
14. Conflict can ruin a social welfare system or reduce charity   X  
15. A locust infestation can diminish food stocks or ruin harvests X
16. High number of people unemployed   X  
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10. Link the following situations with availability/access/utilisation of food
Quiz
High medical fees can reduce household budget for food.
       
 Unsafe drinking water can cause chronic diarrhoea and result in decreased absorption of nutrients.
Conflict can ruin a social welfare system or reduce charity    
A locust infestation can diminish food stocks or ruin harvests
High number of people unemployed  
  Inadequate food availability Inadequate food access Inadequate food utilization
1. A severe drought can reduce a harvest or kill livestock. X (x)  
2. Pipeline break in food aid X (x)  
3. High market prices of important food products   X  
4. Shortage of seeds or fertilisers X can reduce yields    
5. Outbreak of Cholera     x
6.  Lack of nutritional knowledge causes people to have an
inadequate diet or cause extensive vitamin loss during preparation.    x
7. A broken bridge can hamper access to food or trade markets. x    
8. Lack of education and skills reduces job opportunities (and therefore reduces family income).  x  
9. Some strong cultural beliefs prevent people from eating certain healthy food products   x
10. High medical fees or funeral costs can reduce household budget for food.   x  
11. War or conflict can prevent food import to certain regions. X    
12. Unsafe drinking water can cause chronic diarrhoea and result in decreased absorption of nutrients.     X
13. Low livestock prices can reduce cash availability to purchase food.   X  
14. Conflict can ruin a social welfare system or reduce charity   X  
15. A locust infestation can diminish food stocks or ruin harvests X
16. High number of people unemployed   X  
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11. How do you measure food insecurity? 27-Mar-17
Brainstorm with the group on all the options
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12. Examples of indicators Food availability / general context
 Categories
 Examples of indicators
Food availability / general context
Rainfall and expected effects on harvest
Crop production (types of crops, yields, methods of production)
Livestock holdings and status
Land area cultivated and systems of land access
Food access
Livelihood strategies
Income and food sources
Essential expenditures
Household food consumption patterns
Household food stocks
Productive household assets
Market prices of key staples and productive assets (e.g. livestock) – Terms of trade
Coping strategies
Food utilisation
Nutritional status
Health status
Water sources and sanitation facilities
Feeding and caring practices
Food consumption patterns
There are many different types of information one would need to obtain.
Food security cannot be measured through a single indicator so multiple measures have to be used and analysed together.
Best is always to relate it somehow to the three pillars of food security. In this way one can find out on what level the problems are.
27-Mar-17

13. Examples of indicators Food availability / general context
 Categories
 Examples of indicators
Food availability / general context
Rainfall and expected effects on harvest
Crop production (types of crops, yields, methods of production)
Livestock holdings and status
Land area cultivated and systems of land access
Food
access
Livelihood strategies
Income and food sources
Essential expenditures
Household food consumption patterns
Household food stocks
Productive household assets
Market prices of key staples and productive assets (e.g. livestock) – Terms of trade
Coping strategies
Food utilisation
Nutritional status
Health status
Water sources and sanitation facilities
Feeding and caring practices
Food consumption patterns
Qualitative +
Quantitative
Indicators *
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14. Important elements in Food Security assessments
Livelihood
Vulnerability
Coping strategies
It is difficult to talk about food security without speaking about the following terms:
Livelihoods = ?
Vulnerability = ?
Coping strategies = ?
In next slides these three terms will be explained

15. A livelihood is a…
“way of making a living”
In the food security context it means people, their capabilities, their assets, their income and the activities they require in order to make a living.
Food security can be an outcome of a livelihood oriented programme
Livelihood:
“A livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (stores, resources, claims and access) and activities required for a means of living.”
A sustainable livelihood can cope with and recover from stress and shocks, as well as maintain or enhance capabilities and assets, and provide sustainable livelihood opportunities for the next generation’
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16. Vulnerability
A household’s vulnerability is determined by its ability to cope with:
risks and shocks, such as drought, flooding,
adverse government policies, conflict, and the HIV/AIDS crisis.
The magnitude, duration and timing of the shock are
important factors.
In order to minimize the impact of such shocks and maintain
adequate food access, households and communities employ
coping strategies.
Vulnerability is not the same as poverty, although underlying poverty contributes to increased vulnerability
in most emergencies; the effects of disasters are worsened when superimposed on a situation of widespread
structural poverty.
Vulnerability is distinct from poverty in that vulnerable people are not necessarily poor but are expected to lack the means to cope when they are exposed to risks, shocks, and stress. Here, the concept of vulnerability is not independent; it is linked to and dependent upon the hazard. So, in the food security context, households or communities are ‘vulnerable to’ a shock, rather than inherently ‘vulnerable’, although sometimes people use the word to mean ‘poor’ or ‘physically frail’.
27-Mar-17

17. Coping strategies Examples?
Coping strategies are activities people use as a means of
getting through difficult times, brought on by events
affecting their livelihood and way of living.
When you assess Food Security you look at the different
coping strategies of communities and households.
Who is using what kind of coping strategy, and how well is it
working?
Are coping strategies always ‘abnormal’ or damaging?
Are coping strategies always ‘abnormal’ or damaging?
There are different stages of coping. Early coping strategies are not necessarily abnormal: they are reversible and cause no lasting damage. These may include collecting wild foods, selling non-essential assets or sending a family member to work elsewhere.
More drastic strategies may permanently undermine a household’s future food security. These may involve the sale of land, distress migration on the part of whole families, or intensive use of wood leading to deforestation.
Some coping strategies employed by women and girls, such as prostitution, tend to expose them to sexual violence, physical harm and higher risk of HIV infection. Migration generally increases the risk of HIV transmission.
Coping strategies may also affect the environment, for example through over-exploitation of commonly-owned natural resources. It is important to protect and support food security before people begin using more damaging strategies, having exhausted all other means of coping.
Examples?
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18. What is the difference between
Programmes that address
Food Security
and
Food Aid
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19. Food security programmes and food aid
Food aid is ONE way of contributing to secure food in a household. But there are many other ways to do that also. Many other ways are cheaper, more dignified, more sustanaible, more effective etc. Food aid is only a ‘last resort’, if you cannot address food insecurity in any other way at that moment in time.
Look at the module of livelihood interventions for different options.
Also look at the module of General Food Distributions on the strengths, weaknesses and challenges of those programmes.
Food aid
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20. Why would information on Food Security be important when
you work in nutrition?
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21. Importance of Food Security Assessment
Results might be able to
Explain the current nutrition situation
Predict worsening or improvement of nutrition situation
Direct you to the most effective intervention to address malnutrition
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22. Elements of emergency food security assessment and analysis
The information should indicate whether there is a possible link between the food security situation and current malnutrition or whether there is a risk of malnutrition unless some food security and livelihoods intervention is implemented
Refer back to conceptual framework of malnutrition on next slide
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23. Undernutrition Inadequate food intake Disease Underlying causes
Immediate causes
Basic causes
Formal and informal infrastructure/ political ideology/resources
Inadequate food intake
Poor Public Health
Household food insecurity
Disease
Undernutrition
Poor social and care practices
Point out the specific part in the conceptual framework where food security plays a role.
Source: UNICEF conceptual framework

24. What has the rise in unemployment in an area to do with nutrition
Example:
What has the rise in unemployment in an area to do with nutrition
A family might have no income any longer and the quality of the diet of the family members will deteriorate. Additionally, the total amount of calories might be insufficient
people might migrate to get work elsewhere. If mothers of young children move without their children, there might be an impact on the nutritional/care practice of their youngest children. If fathers migrate women and children that stay at home might be less physically protected and they might be more exposed to sexual violence and HIV (with consequences on nutrition and FS). Equally, the mother might not have access to the salary of her migrated husband with potential nutritional consequences.
Children might need to stop going to school and physical work. This might have implications on their nutritional status.
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25. Food security assessments
Might be conducted:
as part of early warning and surveillance systems, for emergency preparedness or monitoring;
to identify the main constraints that prevent households from meeting their food and other needs; and
as part of studies to understand the causes of malnutrition. (These situations are not mutually exclusive and may therefore overlap)
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26. Food security assessments
Most emergency food security assessments have one or more of these objectives:
Estimation of the severity of food insecurity
Projection of future food insecurity
Identification of groups that are more affected by or vulnerable to food insecurity
Identification of appropriate interventions to improve households’ access to food
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27. Depending on objectives, some of following questions need to be answered
■ How do people make their living?
■ How do people meet their food needs?
■ What resources do they have?
■ Who accesses these resources over time?
■ How does a normal situation compare to a crisis?
■ Can people manage without assistance from
the Government/NGOs/United Nations/Red Cross/Crescent?
■ If not, how can the humanitarian community support coping strategies?
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28. Steps in Food Security Assessment
Difference between primary and secondary information:
Secondary information: data collected from a secondary source rather than directly from the affected area. This is collected prior to doing assessment in the field
Primary information: data collecting new information (primary data) using various methods in which the community and other key people actively participate. The information is collected for the specific purpose of the food security assessment and will be acquired by the assessment team.
and Reporting
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29. There is no standard method for assessing food security in emergencies and different agencies have developed approaches that suit their individual needs.
The various approaches to food security assessment have some similarities and some differences.
While there is no single ‘best’ way to conduct food security assessments in emergencies, certain elements from the approaches used by different agencies can be used.
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30. Name of assessment approach Agency
There are many different approaches to food security assessments and analysis in emergencies. They have a lot in common.
Some examples:
Name of assessment approach
Agency
Global information and early warning system (GIEWS)
FAO
Famine early warning system (FEWS)
USAID
Emergency Food Security Assessment
WFP
Integrated phase classification
Multi-agency
Household economy approach
FEG, SCUK
Economic security assessment
ICRC
Household livelihood security
CARE
Sustainable Livelihoods Framework
OXFAM
Nutrition causal analysis approach
AAH
Food and nutritional assessment
MSF
Livelihood Assessment Toolkit
FAO / ILO
These approaches are generally spoken very technical.
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31. Food security assessment
Various tools are available to measure e.g.dietary intake, coping strategies (see HTP Module 9)
Type of index
Name
Agency
Dietary intake
Individual dietary diversity score
FANTA/FAO
Household dietary diversity score
Food consumption score
WFP
Cornell-Radimer hunger scale
Cornell University
Household food insecurity access scale
FANTA
Coping strategies
Coping strategies index
CARE, WFP
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32. * In all cases, any attempt should be made to
combine nutrition assessment with food security information,
as the first one is likely to be explained, at least partially, by the second. *
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33. Key messages
Food security means access by all people, at all times, to sufficient, safe and nutritious food for a healthy and active life.
Food insecurity is just one of the underlying causes of undernutrition.
Access to food is often disrupted during emergencies. It is therefore vital to understand how households access food to plan appropriate interventions to protect food security and ultimately nutritional status.
Food security assessments might be conducted: (i) as part of early warning and surveillance systems, for emergency preparedness or monitoring; (ii) to identify the main constraints that prevent households from meeting their food and other needs ; and (iii) as part of studies to understand the causes of malnutrition.
Food security cannot be measured through a single indicator so multiple measures have to be used and analysed together.
There is no standard method for assessing food security in emergencies. But certain elements from the approaches used by different agencies can be taken to form a ‘hybrid’ suitable for a particular working context, as long as technical and analytical rigour is maintained.
Including nutrition information in a food security assessment (and vice versa) improves the quality of the results and helps to ensure an appropriate response.