When we talk about food security, it should not be understood only as citizens’ access to food. This should also be seen as a threat to national security. Because food security is a very important component of economic security, and economic security is a very important component of national security. The concept of internal security includes the following elements: state security, protection of territorial integrity, economic security, environmental security, and social security.
American scientist M. Ensminger writes: “Food consumption is both a responsibility and a weapon. It is a responsibility because it is a fundamental human right to have enough food to live and eat. On the other hand, it is a weapon because food has a greater impact and more power than oil in politics and economics.” In the first lines of the Food Security Program of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the following line is highlighted: “Food security is one of the basic human rights, being a key factor in human dignity.” This means that by ensuring our food security, we are protecting not only the socio-economic security of our citizens but also their rights and freedoms. Or by failing to protect it effectively, we are creating a threatening environment for human rights.
The level of provision of food security in Azerbaijan
The state budget for 2022 [1] will allocate 997 million manats for agricultural expenditures. Of this, 456 million manats are intended for food security measures. This means that 45% of agricultural expenditures will be spent on food security.
We know that one of the most important components of food security is measured by the level of food self-sufficiency in the country. Interesting results emerge when analyzing the level of self-sufficiency in two directions (plant growing and animal breeding).
Level of self-sufficiency in crop products, percent
| The name of the product | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
| Cereals (except rice) | 74.1 | 67.3 | 68.1 |
| wheats | 64.8 | 57.2 | 57.1 |
| barleys | 103.1 | 100.2 | 94.6 |
| corns | 82.7 | 80.0 | 86.6 |
| oats | 89.2 | 90.9 | 86.6 |
| other types of cereals | 82.3 | 88.2 | 93.9 |
| Legumes | 72.0 | 76.1 | 60.3 |
| Potatoes | 90.8 | 87.8 | 90.6 |
| All kinds of vegetables | 115.0 | 112.0 | 1104 |
| Tomatoes | 138.0 | 132.5 | 131,.0 |
| Melon products | 99.7 | 100.8 | 100.8 |
| Fruits and berries | 123.2 | 123.1 | 116.3 |
| Walnuts and hazelnuts | 130.0 | 138.2 | 138.0 |
| Pomegranates | 106.3 | 110.7 | 112.0 |
| Grapes | 92.5 | 94.3 | 95.8 |
Source: Official database on “food balances” prepared by the State Statistical Committee [2]
According to official statements, the lowest level of self-sufficiency in plant products in our country can be seen in cereals. The level of food self-sufficiency in plant food products (excluding cereals and legumes) is high.
However, there is a mystery behind the statistics. It also needs to be brought out of darkness into light. At first glance, it can be seen from the table above that, except for cereals, our country is supposed to be self-sufficient in other products. However, sometimes it is possible to export these products without meeting domestic demand. For example, hazelnut exports. Its level of self-sufficiency is very high. But hazelnuts are not affordable, and they are exported to European and CIS markets. The same can be said about potatoes. The level of self-sufficiency of potatoes is 90% but the price of potatoes in our country is growing rapidly, and we import potatoes from Russia, Belarus, and Central Asia. Thus, we do not provide both physical and economic access to food for the commodity items we cited as examples.
In this table, let’s focus on the level of self-sufficiency in livestock products. [3]
Level of self-sufficiency in livestock products, percent
| The name of the product | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
| All kinds of meat and meat products | 82.7 | 82.5 | 84.5 |
| beef and meat products | 85.1 | 86.1 | 87.4 |
| mutton and goat meat and meatproducts | 98.1 | 97.6 | 97.3 |
| pork and meat products | 5.5 | 5.3 | 4.7 |
| poultry and meat products | 75.9 | 74.6 | 79.0 |
| Milk and dairy products | 86.7 | 86.3 | 83.5 |
| Eggs | 101.5 | 101.8 | 100.0 |
| Fish and fish products | 83.1 | 82.2 | 81.7 |
When we pay attention to the level of self-sufficiency of goods on the table, it becomes clear that only our position on eggs is good. There is a degree of dependence on imports for the remaining livestock products. However, dependence on imports does not always mean that food security is not ensured.
The provision of food security cannot be considered as a local concern of one state alone. It is also seen as a policy of strategic importance on a global scale. According to the latest figures released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) [4], more than 821 million people worldwide suffer from hunger. According to the World Health Organization’s 2019 report, 600 million people worldwide suffer from food poisoning each year, of whom 420,000 die, including 125,000 children.
Therefore, special attention is paid to several indicators that are very important in the world: poverty, hunger index, access to drinking water, the level of dependence of countries on imports (especially food), etc.
For both livestock and crop products, based on the situation, we can assess our position on food security in general in comparison with other countries.
Sources:
[1]http://www.maliyye.gov.az/scripts/pdfjs/web/viewer.html?file=/uploads/static-pages/files/6138cc3f29b92.pdf
[2] https://www.stat.gov.az/source/food_balances/5
[3] Official database of “food balances” prepared by the State Statistical Committee [https://www.stat.gov.az/source/food_balances/5]
[4] Reports of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), https://www.fao.org/hunger/ru/
