Food insecurity and sustainable urban development: a reflection on food security in the neighborhoods of Birjand city

Subject Areas :

Mohammad Eskandari sani ¹ , saeedeh Mohammad abadi ² , Mehdi Vafaeifard ³ , javad Mohammadabadi ⁴

1 - Associate Professor, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Department of Geography, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran
2 - MSc, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Department of Geography, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran
3 - Associate Professor, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Department of Geography, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran
4 - PhD Student, Department of Geography, Faculty of Earth Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

Received: 2023-05-19 Accepted : 2024-05-26 Published : 2025-08-25

Keywords: Food Security, Urban Agriculture, urban settlements, Birjand,

Abstract :

Ensuring food security is one of the conditions for realizing national security and one of the pillars of economic development. During the current century, due to the disruption of the balance of this relationship, the food crisis has become one of the major challenges of urbanization. Due to the increase in the population of cities, droughts, climate changes, Covid-19, the war between Russia and Ukraine, the challenge of food security in cities has shown itself more strongly. This research has investigated the food security situation and ranking of neighborhoods in Birjand city. The type of this research is applied and developmental. In order to index and measure food security among indirect methods such as the use of income level and direct methods such as food security indicators through the standard food security questionnaire, the results show that food security is average in the citizens' society and the per capita comparison of food consumption Birjand city is low in comparison with the national and international average, and the results of cluster analysis for the spatial stratification of neighborhoods in Birjand based on the variable of consumption of basic goods, Javadieh neighborhood is at a lower level in terms of the consumption of basic goods compared to other neighborhoods. is placed Also, in the cluster analysis and spatial stratification of the neighborhoods of Birjand based on the food security variable of basic goods, the neighborhoods of Mehrshahr, Pasdaran, Javadiyeh, Jumohri, Tawheed are more similar to each other and are in a lower group than other neighborhoods. take Therefore, it is necessary for planners to adopt solutions, including urban agriculture, in order to solve the spatial inequality of city neighborhoods in relation to food security.

 

Extended Abstract

 

 

Introduction

 

Poverty and hunger have existed as a fundamental problem throughout human social life. Necessary, sufficient and appropriate nutrition is one of the important factors of physical and mental health of people. The main source of personal well-being is food security. Today, food poverty has become one of the indicators of sustainable development and urban health. Today, the challenges of increasing hunger in the world, the lack of balance in people's daily diet, the destruction of the environment and natural resources, and similar issues have caused the issue of food security to become one of the most important issues of human societies.

 

Methodology

In this research, descriptive-analytical research method is used to explain the food security situation in Birjand city. The statistical population is the citizens of different neighborhoods of Birjand city. For citizens, cluster sampling method was used to distribute questionnaires. Therefore, the number of 15 existing neighborhoods at the city level was selected and classified into six groups, based on the population of each neighborhood, the number of questionnaires was distributed and completed according to the population of the neighborhood. The type of this research is applied and developmental. The analysis of research data was done in two parts. In the descriptive statistics section, descriptive data was summarized and analyzed through frequency distribution table, mean, standard deviation and coefficient of variation. Binomial test is used in the inferential statistics section. Also, data cluster analysis was performed based on the food security variable and the food security variable of basic consumer goods.

 

Results and discussion

The results show that according to the surveyed people, the food security of their basic commodities is average, but the consumption of milk and dairy products, types of fish and red meat is lower compared to the world average, which is due to the high price of these goods and the lack of culture in consumption. Dairy products are not without influence in the country. And the results of the cluster analysis for the spatial stratification of the neighborhoods of Birjand based on the variable of consumption of basic goods Javadieh neighborhood is at a lower level in terms of the consumption of basic goods compared to other neighborhoods. Also, in the cluster analysis and spatial stratification of the neighborhoods of Birjand city based on the food security variable of basic goods, the neighborhoods of Mehrshahr, Pasdaran, Javadiyeh, Jumohri, Tawheed are more similar in terms of the food security status of basic goods and compared to the neighborhoods of They are placed in a lower group.

 

Conclusion

The reduction of the population in the villages and the increase in the population of the cities caused a major part of the world's producer population to become consumers. During the current century, due to the disruption of the balance of this relationship, the food crisis has become one of the major challenges of urbanization. The insignificant potentials of South Khorasan and successive droughts have increased the number of rural migrants and low-income groups, and this situation has caused the development of urban poverty and food insecurity in the city. The location of Birjand city in a dry and desert region on the one hand, climate changes and recent droughts on the other hand have reduced the production of agricultural products. As the production of agricultural products decreases, the prices increase. Also, the animal husbandry industry is overshadowed and the meat and dairy sector is gradually removed from the people's food basket. Therefore, it is necessary for planners to adopt solutions, including urban agriculture, in order to solve the spatial inequality of city neighborhoods in relation to food security.

 

 

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