Intensifying Effects of Climate Change in Food Loss: A Threat to Food Security in Turkey

Abstract

Turkey is increasingly concerned about the effects of climate change, weather unpredictability, and severe events on agricultural production, food loss, and livelihoods. Turkey has long struggled against climate variability and catastrophic climatic events to prevent further declines in agricultural output. This study assessed the risk of climate change in Turkey from the perspective of loss in food grains and food security domain considering exposure to extreme climate events using the data from 1991 to 2019. This paper makes a theoretical contribution to the literature by identifying the relationship between food waste and food import, food prices and economic growth. It also makes an empirical contribution by administering and econometrically analyzing the impact of the loss of food grains on the aforementioned independent variables. Policy implications for the current national agriculture policy were provided using the vector auto-regression (VAR) model and derivative analysis. Food grain loss negatively correlates with food security since it increases reliance on food imports from outside. Moreover, the losses in food supplies contributes greatly to price increases. The GDP growth rate, however, was shown to be a feeble instigator. Climate change threatens food security, and the country’s progress toward sustainable development objectives is hampered in general, particularly concerning no poverty and zero hunger goals. In conclusion, climate change and its associated factors harm Turkey’s food security and economy.

Impact of Climate Change on Agroecosystems and Potential Adaptation Strategies

“…The effects of climate change can be influenced by the geographic area because their impact on agricultural production is different depending on the latitude and altitude of the area. Such an impact is high and produces a reduction in food production in hot countries, whereas it could be positive and lower in cold countries [23,44].…”

“…Therefore, if economic activity drives climate change, climate change can reduce the capacity of the natural capital to support the economy, with negative effects also on food security, which is important for human life [22][23][24]. Mainly, food security refers to the possibility of ensuring equal access to food for the world population and sufficient food for a good life in time.…”

Assessing Supply Chain Innovations for Building Resilient Food Supply Chains: An Emerging Economy Perspective

“…Global food wastage accounts for around one-third of the overall production, which is 1.3 billion tons per annum. As cited in past research, the size of food waste is a matter of great concern for developing economies and developed countries [39]; although, the causes of wastage are diverse [40,41]. Due to structural differences, few forms of food waste are inappropriate for consumption and hence require reprocessing for value recovery [42].…”

Effects of Heat and Drought Stress on Sustainable Agriculture and Future Food Security in Türkiye

“…Despite possessing 24 million hectares of agricultural land, only approximately 20% are irrigated, with the remaining 80% reliant on rainfall. However, over 70% of Türkiye's total water resources are utilized for agricultural irrigation (Dellal and Unuvar, 2019;Ahmed et al, 2022). This excessive water consumption, coupled with elevated temperatures and drought conditions, exacerbates the situation.…”