Food security in the COVID 19 pandemic: impacts related to food supply chains

ABSTRACT

The fragility of global food supply chains, which signals food shortages and increases in food prices in recent years, has reached the highest level with the government's lockdown measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aims to highlight the disruptions in global food supply chains brought about by the ongoing COVID -19 pandemic and present the impact of these disruptions on food security. Supply-side and demand-side shocks that bring about deterioration of the flow in food supply chains and disruptions that threaten food security have made access to adequate and nutritious food an issue as significant as the pandemic. In the food supply chain, panic-oriented buying behaviors by consumers, job and income losses due to changes in labor markets and inflation have occurred as demand-side effects. Labor shortages, disruptions in transportation networks, restrictions imposed by countries, the opportunities of digital technology, and the spread of e-commerce have emerged as supply-side effects. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused negative effects on food security, jeopardizing availability, access, utilization, and stability with supply-side and demand-side shocks. In the conclusion part of the study, the resiliency of food systems, automation of food supply chains, the safety of employees and the importance of monitoring supply chain activities in online environments, the social security policies and practices of the state for vulnerable groups experiencing food insecurity, and food sovereignty were discussed.