Mitigating the nutritional impacts of the global food price crisis. Summary of a workshop

The 2007-2008 rapid increase in food prices and the financial crisis that started in 2008 have exacerbated the chronic problems of hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. Progress and future efforts by national governments and international actors to mitigate the negative effects of increased food prices on particular groups are thus threatened. The Institute of Medicine held a workshop on July 14-16, 2009, which is summarized in this volume, to describe the dynamic technological, agricultural, and economic issues contributing to the food price increases of 2007 and 2008 and their impacts on health and nutrition in poor regions. The compounding effects of the current global economic downturn on nutrition motivated additional discussions on these dual crises, their impacts on the nutritional status of vulnerable populations, and opportunities to mitigate their negative nutritional effects. A short summary of this workshop's outcomes is available for free in English.