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Chapter 20 – Hunger and the Global Environment
Learning Objectives
After completing Chapter 20, the student will be able to:
20.1 Identify some reasons why hunger is present in a country as wealthy as the United States.
20.2 Identify some reasons why hunger is present in the developing countries of the world.
20.4 Explain why relieving environmental problems will also help to alleviate hunger and poverty.
a. List the environmental problems that are decreasing food production.
20.5 Discuss ways consumers can conserve resources when making food-related choices.
Assignments and Other Instructional Materials
The following ready-to-use assignments are available in this chapter of the instructor’s manual:
• Case Study 20: Food for a Low-Income Family
Lecture Presentation Outline
3
Key to instructor resource annotations (shown to the right of or below outline topics):
I. Hunger in the United States
A. Food security vs. insecurity
1. Food security
a. High food security
b. Marginal food security
2. Food insecurity (Figure 20-1)
a. Low food security
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B. Defining Hunger in the United States IM WS 20-1
1. Food insufficiency
2. Food Poverty
b. Food deserts
B. Relieving Hunger in the United States IM CS 20, CA 20-1
1. Federal Food Assistance Programs
a. WIC is for low-income pregnant women, breastfeeding women, and children
II. World Hunger 11e TRA 35
A. Food Shortages (Figure 20-3)
1. Political Turbulence – Political turbulence and government policies during famine
2. Armed Conflicts – May interfere with humanitarian efforts
3. Natural Disasters – Disaster areas accept food assistance from other countries
B. Poverty and Overpopulation 12e TRA 29; 10e TRA 180
1. Population Growth Leads to Hunger and Poverty (Figure 20-4)
2. Hunger and Poverty Lead to Population Growth
3. Breaking the Cycle
a. Curbing population growth
III. Malnutrition
A. Nutrient Deficiencies
1. Deficient in iron, iodine, vitamin A, and zinc
2. Consequences of deficiencies
B. Growth Failure (Table 20-2)
IV. The Global Environment IM CA 20-2
A. Hunger and Environment Connections
1. Planting Crops
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5. Water Misuse (Figure 20-6)
V. Highlight: Environmentally Friendly Food Choices IM CA 20-3, 20-4, 20-5, 20-6
A. Choice: Animal or Vegetable? (Figures H20-1 & H20-2)
1. Eat low on the food chain
2. Some are choosing smaller portions of meat
3. Some are choosing vegetarian or vegan diets
B. Choice: Global or Local?
1. Foods transported long distances are:
a. Energetically costly
3. Eco-Friendly Miles
C. Other Food-Related Choices
Case Study 20: Food for a Low-Income Family
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Sarah is a 30-year-old mother of two young children, ages 3 and 5. Her husband was recently disabled in a car
accident and has been unable to work for 6 months. Sarah works part-time in her children’s preschool and her
husband receives a monthly check for his disability. Medical expenses have wiped out the family’s savings and
monthly expenses often exceed the couple’s income. Sarah tells her close friend that she is unable to provide
balanced meals for her family because she often runs out of foods such as milk and fresh produce before payday.
Her children receive a healthy lunch and snack at preschool and a couple of times in the past month Sarah and her
husband have had to skimp on their meals at home to make sure the children were fed adequately. Sarah is worried
that their limited resources may be affecting the nutritional health of her family.
1. Based on this family’s history, how would you classify their food insecurity according to Table 20-1?
2. Using the “How To” ideas on page 663, what are at least 3 practical suggestions that would help Sarah provide
nutritious meals to her family at the lowest cost?
3. What programs mentioned in this chapter might this family be eligible for that could help improve their access
to nutritious food?
4. Sarah’s church keeps an emergency food pantry for people in their community. List some low-cost non-
perishable food suggestions that would provide maximum nutritional benefit to this family.
5. Sarah has recently qualified for the SNAP program. What nutrient-dense foods might she buy that would help
stretch her food dollar and improve the overall quality of her family’s diet?
6. Plan a one-day menu with 3 meals and 1 snack for this family that incorporates your ideas from the previous
questions.
Answer Key
1. Low food security (3-7 positive responses for households with children).
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Suggested Classroom Activities
If you are fortunate enough to have time to cover this chapter during your class, there are many ways to make the
subject interesting. There is an increasing emphasis on the environment and you could begin this section by
reviewing some current articles from your local newspaper. Next, it is best to move as quickly as possible to
personal lifestyle information such as food shopping and food appliances use.
Classroom Activity 20-1: Caring for the Homeless and Hungry: Weekend Meals
Key concept: Compassion for hunger Class size: Any
Instructions: Regarding hunger, the instructor may want to ask students how familiar they are with hunger problems
in their own community. Nutrition students often lack experience working with low-income groups, including those
who are homeless, the homebound elderly, and those needing emergency food assistance. To address this need,
some universities are incorporating community service projects into their curriculums.
To give students in an introductory nutrition course an idea of how hunger affects people, have them volunteer to
participate in a local food recovery program that provides meals to the hungry. Have them write a report about the
experience and discuss what they learned with the class.
Classroom Activity 20-2: Attending Local Council Meetings
Key concept: Local environmental issues Class size: Any
Instructions: To help students gain awareness of local environmental issues, encourage them to attend local city
council meetings about issues pertaining to the environment. For example, they could attend a meeting on industry’s
impact on local water quality. Extra credit can be given for oral or written reports about the meetings.
Classroom Activity 20-3: Environmental Impact of Food Intake
Key concept: Eating “high/low on the food chain” Class size: Any
Instructions: Students may want to examine a day’s food intake and identify for each food how far up or down on
the food chain it is. What substitutions could they make that would lead them to eat further down on the food chain?
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dependence on over farming from other areas as well as reduce intake of additives, etc.” Finally, each student should
submit to the instructor a six-month plan on how she/he will implement these changes over a gradual time period.
Classroom Activity 20-4: Explore Impact of Food Purchasing Habits
Key concept: Impact of personal behaviors on the environment Class size: Any
Instructions: To increase students’ awareness of their impact on the environment, discuss ways in which those who
purchase and prepare their own food can pay attention to packaging and to how often they shop and how much fuel
they use to shop for food. Students who live in dorms may want to discuss the ways in which they could encourage
foodservice organizations to make changes that would benefit the environment.
To illustrate the savings in gas that a family could achieve by shopping nearby and only once a week: A family that
shops every day for 30 years at a store 5 miles away in a 25-miles-per-gallon car will drive over 1,000,000 miles just
for groceries. In contrast, another family that shops once a week at a store 1 mile away in a 50-miles-per-gallon car
for 30 years will drive only some 3,000 miles. Each gallon of gas burned in a car releases some 20 pounds of carbon
dioxide, so the second family will generate about 40 tons less carbon dioxide than the first family, just by making
fewer and shorter trips to the grocery store.
Classroom Activity 20-5: Record Daily Garbage Generated
Key concept: Impact of personal behaviors on the environment Class size: Any
Instructions: Have students keep a record of all the garbage they generate for one day. Divide students into small
groups and have them exchange lists and offer each other suggestions of how they could reduce, reuse, and recycle.
How To “Try It!” Activities Answer Key
How to Plan Healthy, Thrifty Meals
Once students perform the search at the CNPP site as directed, they will be able to download a PDF of the booklet
Recipes and Tips for Healthy, Thrifty Meals, which includes a week’s worth of meal plans for a family of 4, with
recipes. The student should a dietary analysis of one daily plan, with the quantities divided by 4.
How to Determine Your Food Footprint
Students can be expected to have several items with high scores to discuss after completing the questionnaire.
Depending on the student’s lifestyle, examples of steps they could plan to take to reduce their “food footprints”
include eating less/no meat, choosing lamb or turkey if not vegetarian, choosing water as a beverage, avoiding fast
food, shopping at farmers’ markets, growing food plants, selecting in-season produce, preparing most/all meals at
home, selecting locally-grown produce, and choosing more environmentally friendly fruits/vegetables.
How to Make Environmentally Friendly Food-Related Choices
The Planet Green website features a variety of food/health-related quizzes that students can take to learn more about
topics such as corporate ownership of “green” food brands, carbon emissions, farmers’ markets, and “eco-friendly”
food and beverage choices. Much of this information will reinforce what students read in the chapter’s Highlight.
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Study Card 20 Answer Key
Critical Thinking Questions
6
1. It can be argued that most Americans understand the marketing concept of a “happy meal.” Based on your
understanding of food insecurity and food poverty, define the concept of a “hungry meal” in the United States.
2. Paradoxically, even in the presence of hunger obesity exists. What factors have led to the development of this
paradox? What strategies can be used to prevent it from continuing in the United States?
3. Discuss methods of food recovery and find examples of community resources that may assist individuals who
are experiencing food acquisition challenges.
4. Describe the linked cycle that exists among hunger, poverty, and overpopulation on the global level. What
actions could be taken to possibly interrupt this repetitive cycle?
5. Compare and contrast the health implications of acute and chronic malnutrition.
6. Define the concept of sustainable agriculture and explain how it can be used to potentially solve issues related
to food access.
Answer Key
1. A happy meal represents a marketing attempt to encourage children to eat a packaged meal product that is
inconclusive of food combined with an associated toy. It is typically associated with a theme as well as being
based on gender preference. Happy meals are competitively priced and aimed at making children want and/or
desire the meal. The packaging enhances the idea of portability and as such makes it an attractive food selection
2. In the presence of hunger and food poverty, individuals are faced with making food choices that are based on
economics rather than nutrient quality. This is due in part to the nature of the supply and demand economics
affecting food manufacturers. Fresh fruits and vegetables are priced higher than their comparative processed
counterparts, and thus the dollar goes farther when selecting processed food items. Individuals are then led to a
3. Food recovery involves methods whereby suitable foods that would otherwise be discarded are obtained for
distribution to hungry people who are classified as having low income. Methods of food recovery include: field
gleaning, perishable food rescue, prepared food rescue, and nonperishable food collection. The aim of each of
4. A linked cycle exists among hunger, poverty, and overpopulation. Hunger or lack of adequate food leading to
poor quality of life places a huge burden on individual health. Combine that with poverty, and the individual is
left with few economic choices with which to sustain quality of life. Subsequently, with overpopulation this
leads to an increased burden for distribution of available resources. Overcrowding stresses available resources,
5. Acute malnutrition results when wasting has occurred as a result of current or recent food deprivation.
Examination of anthropometric data such as height and weight provides evidence of malnutrition. Altered
growth patterns in acute malnutrition reflect being underweight in relationship to the body’s height. Chronic
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6. The concept of sustainable agriculture is two fold: first, to be able to supply food over an unlimited time frame,
and second, to be able to supply the food without harming the environment. Thus, sustainable agriculture would
IM Worksheet Answer Key
Worksheet 20-1: Reflections on World Hunger – Answers will vary.
Worksheet 20-2: “Fighting Malnutrition” Case Study (Internet Exercise)
1. b
2. a
3. b
4. a
5. a
Worksheet 20-3: Chapter 20 Crossword Puzzle
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Worksheet 20-1: Reflections on World Hunger
Using the definitions in your textbook on pages 660 and 661, provide your “reflections” on the areas of food
security, insecurity, insufficiency, and poverty for each of the following areas, in terms of whether you think it exists
on the specified level. Place an X in the box under each concept you feel is applicable for each of the situations
listed on the left.
Question for Consideration
Food
Security
Food
Insecurity
Food
Insufficiency
Food
Poverty
Your own personal “food” situation affecting
yourself and your immediate family
The “food” situation of your friends and
acquaintances
Consider the following:
1. Do you see any differences in how you are interpreting the concepts based on how you are organizing your
frame of reference?
2. When considering these definitions, has your viewpoint changed after reflecting on what you know about the
concept of hunger based on your textbook readings?
3. What methods could be utilized to eradicate these conditions both in your part of the world and in the global
community?
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Worksheet 20-2: “Fighting Malnutrition” Case Study (Internet Exercise)
1. Approximately 250 million men and women suffer from nutritional anemia.
a. True
b. False
2. The first calcium-fortified orange juice developed by Procter & Gamble was named Citrus Hill.
3. The chemistry of fruit-flavored drinks is affected by low acidity that influences bioavailability,
4. The "Nutri Delight" product encountered problems in the test market due to distribution and pricing structures.
5. To promote recognition of "NutriStar" in Venezuela, Procter & Gamble formed a partnership with UNICEF, the
Venezuelan Department of Health, and the Venezuelan Pediatric Society.
a. True
b. False
Refer to Exhibit 1 (Consequences of key micronutrient deficiencies) to answer this question.
6. Match the nutrient deficiency with its consequence. Each nutrient can be used more than once.
a. Vitamin A
b. Iron
7. Match the year with the case event.
a. 1989
b. 2002
c. 1996
d. 1992
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Worksheet 20-3: Chapter 20 Crossword Puzzle
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Across:
Down:
4. _____ practices are essential to alleviating stress on
the food system.
6. _____ grown foods support the local economy and
global environment.
9. Having access to enough food to meet your daily
needs
12. Area of limited access to nutritious and affordable
foods
1. Growth _____ is caused by chronic malnutrition.
2. Food shortages can be caused by _____ such as
3. Improvements in _____ are needed to break the
cycle of hunger and poverty.
10. Diets that are primarily _____ based are more
environmentally friendly.
