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‘The history of famine teaches us a lot about the future’
The UN wants hunger to be eradicated from the world in seven years. To achieve this, we need more than only knowledge about the current food system. We also need to understand the history of famine, says Ingrid de Zwarte. This is the topic of her talk at the Academic Year Opening on 4 September 2023.
“We’re drifting further and further away from the UN's goal of no person going hungry in the world by 2030,” says Ingrid de Zwarte, Associate Professor of Economic and Environmental History. She studies the historical role of food and hunger in times of war, such as in the 1940s during the Hunger Winter in the Netherlands, and in Indonesia. At the opening of the new academic year, she will talk about what we can learn for the future from famines that took place in the past.
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Ingrid de Zwarte says it will not be easy to reach the ‘no hunger’ goal by the set date. Indeed, more people are currently on the brink of famine than a few years ago. “345 million people currently face acute food insecurity. These are people who need urgent help. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, their number has doubled.” This is a remarkable change after decades during which the risk of famine fell sharply.
Political failure
At one time, famines had mainly natural causes, such as prolonged drought, which caused crops to fail. Sometimes the siege of a city was a directly identifiable cause, but those famines usually remained localised. The great famines of the 20th century were much more directly linked to political failure and conflict. De Zwarte: “Thanks to the increasing globalisation of trade, since the mid-20th century, we've technically had the ability to eradicate famine. In theory, there is plenty of food.”
All major famines in the 20th century had mainly political causes
Examples of major famines in the 20th century took place under the reign of the Soviet Union and during World War II. The deadliest famine, with an estimated 30 million victims, took place in China in 1959-1961. These famines were the work of totalitarian regimes. After the 1960s, things moved quickly in the right direction. “At the end of the 20th century, there was even hope that famine would be completely eradicated worldwide, but that turned out not to be the case,” says De Zwarte.
Accumulation
In the years during which the COVID-19 pandemic raged, the global food system received a shock as trading systems shut down and food prices rose. Countries highly dependent on imports turned out to be particularly vulnerable. New conflicts also emerged in a number of countries, such as Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Ukraine, in which hunger is being used as a weapon of war. “It is never just a climate shock, because there is always still trade and food aid.”
Famine is always the result of an accumulation of hardship
De Zwarte's research exposes this accumulation of factors and that in turn raises awareness. “History also shows us that these are not situations in which the West does not or cannot play a role. For example, in war situations, what is the role of economic blockades in creating or exacerbating famine?” She wants to see this kind of discussion reflected more in international politics, so that global action can be taken to help vulnerable areas and prevent new famines. In addition, she also hopes that political leaders can be held accountable for deliberately using hunger as a weapon of war.
Reducing vulnerability
“The causes of hunger are complex and multifaceted, so we need to address them at multiple levels,” says De Zwarte. “Knowledge about history and the role of politics also contributes to this. This allows us to better understand the vulnerabilities in current and future food systems.”