Achieving Zero Hunger by 2030, a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal, requires resilient food systems capable of securely feeding billions. This article introduces the Food Systems Resilience Score (FSRS), a novel framework that adapts a proven resilience measurement approach to the context of food systems. The FSRS builds on the success of the Community Flood Resilience Measurement Tool, which has been used in over 110 communities, by applying its five capitals (natural, human, social, financial, and manufactured) and four qualities (robustness, redundancy, resourcefulness, and rapidity) framework to food systems. We define food system resilience as the capacity to ensure adequate, appropriate, and accessible food supply to all, despite various disturbances and unforeseen disruptions. The FSRS measures resilience across multiple dimensions using carefully selected existing indicators, ensuring broad applicability and comparability. Our methodology includes rigorous technical validation to ensure reliability, including optimal coverage analysis, stability checks, and sensitivity testing. By providing standardized metrics and a comprehensive assessment of food system resilience, this framework not only advances research but also equips policymakers with valuable tools for effective interventions. The FSRS enables comparative analysis between countries and temporal tracking of resilience changes, facilitating targeted strategies to build and maintain resilient national food systems. This work contributes to the global effort toward long-term food security and sustainability.

Extensive damage to over 1000 plant species, including food crops, oil and industrial crops, vegetables, fruit trees, ornamentals, fodder species and weeds, has been caused by emerging phytoplasma-mediated diseases, thereby posing significant threat to global food security. Multiple factors, including environmental changes, invasion pathways, vector transmission and the emergence of new pathogen lineages, contribute to the spread of these diseases. Effective management requires stable, long-term strategies to safeguard plant health. Key approaches include comprehensive loss assessments, integration of climate change impacts, predictive modelling, enhanced disease surveillance, and improved detection techniques targeting phytoplasmas. This review highlights phytoplasma-associated plant diseases, emerging pathogen threats, and the factors facilitating their spread, alongside methods for surveillance and detection. In addition, case studies and global collaborative efforts are discussed. Finally, we outline future research priorities aimed at improving the management of phytoplasma-induced plant diseases.

A growing demand for wheat as a staple crop leads to an expansion of its production. The consequence is land use change and short rotations for wheat. But wheat grown in short rotations causes yield decline. To secure future food supplies, a deeper understanding of the physiological processes contributing to this yield reduction is needed. Therefore, a three-year data set from a long-term field trial in Northern Germany was analysed to investigate the impact of crop rotational position (CRP) (wheat grown in the first [W1] and in the third [W3] year in self sequence after break crop) in combination with three genotypes and four rates of nitrogen (N) fertilizer on intercepted radiation by the canopy (Q), radiation use efficiency (RUE), grain yield and yield components. All genotypes showed a reduction of Q, RUE and yields in W3. The focus was further set on differences in yield formation pre- and post-anthesis. This revealed a significant interaction between CRP and genotype. An overall reduction in intercepted radiation pre-anthesis as well as in kernels/m2 in W3 suggested, that yield formation under adverse pre-crop conditions was rather ‘source limited’. A possibility to compensate this limitation might be a prolonged phase of radiation interception post-anthesis.

Almost 12 % of the human population have insufficient access to food and hence are at risk from nutrient deficiencies and related conditions, such as anaemia and stunting. Ruminant meat and milk are rich in protein and micronutrients, making them a highly nutritious food source for human consumption. Conversely, ruminant production contributes to methane (CH4) emissions, a greenhouse gas (GHG) with a global warming potential (GWP) 27–30 times greater than that of carbon dioxide (CO2). Nonetheless, ruminant production plays a crucial role in the circular bioeconomy in terms of upcycling agricultural products that cannot be consumed by humans, into valuable and nutritional food, whilst delivering important ecosystem services. Taking on board the complexities of ruminant production and the need to improve both human and planetary health, there is increasing emphasis on developing innovative solutions to achieve sustainable ruminant production within the ‘One Health’ framework. Specifically, research and innovation will undoubtedly continue to focus on (1) Genetics and Breeding; (2) Animal nutrition and (3) Animal Health, to achieve food security and human health, whilst limiting environmental impact. Implementation of resultant innovations within the agri-food sector will require several enablers, including large-scale investment, multi-actor partnerships, scaling, regulatory approval and importantly social acceptability. This review outlines the grand challenges of achieving sustainable ruminant production and likely research and innovation landscape over the next 15 years and beyond, specifically outlining the pathways and enablers required to achieve sustainable ruminant production within the One Health framework.

Global food security worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Nigeria, food security indicators increased in the first months of the pandemic and then decreased slightly but never returned to their pre-pandemic levels. We assess if savings groups provided household coping mechanisms during COVID-19 in Nigeria by combining the in-person LSMS-ISA/GHS-2018/19 with four rounds of the Nigerian Longitudinal Phone Survey collected during the first year of the pandemic. A quasi-difference-in-differences analysis setup leveraging the panel nature of the data indicates that savings group membership reduces the likelihood of skipping a meal but finds no statistically significant effect on the likelihood of running out of food or eating fewer kinds of food. Given theoretical priors and other literature positing a relationship, we also implement an OLS regression analysis controlling for baseline values finding that having at least one female household member in a savings group is associated with a 5–15% reduction in the likelihood of reporting skipping meals, running out of food, and eating fewer kinds of food. This analysis is not able to establish causality, however, and may in fact overestimate the effects. Together, the results indicate that savings group membership is positively associated with food security after COVID-19, but the causal effect is statistically significant for only one of the three food security indicators. To conclude, considering the interest in savings groups and expectations of continued food security shocks, the importance of collecting better gender-disaggregated longitudinal household data combined with experimental designs and institutional data on savings groups.

In Ghana, the institution of chieftaincy, a traditional political governance system, is saddled with a number of conflicts which have far-reaching implications for food security in affected communities. This study examined how the infamous Bimbilla chieftaincy conflicts in the Northern Region of Ghana undermined the food security situation in the context of hunger, famine and sudden rise in food prices. A total of 383 respondents were randomly and purposely selected in a convergent mixed-methods study design. Questionnaires, interviews and focus group discussions were the main primary data collection methods. The study revealed that the chieftaincy conflicts significantly impacted hunger (β = –0.152, t = –2.807, p = 0.005) and famine (β = 0.188, t = 3.443, p = 0.001). A sudden increase in food prices (β = 0.006, t = 0.113, p = 0.910) stood as the only food security factor which was not affected substantially by the chieftaincy conflicts.

Food insecurity affects the health of college-aged individuals, but its impact on the gut microbiome (GM) over time is poorly understood. This study explored the association between food insecurity and the GM in eighty-five college students, identifying microbial taxa, metabolites and pathways linked to food security status and examining GM stability and microbe–metabolite interactions. Longitudinal GM and metabolomic data were collected from first-year students over an academic year, encompassing periods of variable food security status. Participants were categorised into three groups: food insecure (FI, n 13), food secure (FS, n 44) and variable (VAR, n 28) status. GM composition varied significantly between FS classifications (Bray–Curtis dissimilarity, P ≤ 0·005). Stability analysis revealed correlations between stability scores and microbial features, pathways and metabolites. Specific microbes (e.g. Bifidobacterium species, Faecalibacterium prausnitizii D and Lachnospiraceae), pathways (energy and microbial turnover) and metabolites (cadaverine, N-acetylcadaverine, putrescine, testosterone sulfate and creatine) associated with FI status were identified. Multi-omic integration revealed metabolic pathways influenced by differentially abundant microbial species and co-occurring fecal metabolites in FI participants related to the microbial production of polyamines, detoxification and energy metabolism. The transition from FS to FI showed no significant differences at specific taxonomic, functional or metabolite levels. This study uncovers complex interactions between food security, GM composition and metabolism. Significant differences were found in microbial community variability and metabolic pathways associated with food security status, but the transition from food security to insecurity disrupted the GM without clear taxonomic or functional distinctions, emphasising the need for further research into these mechanisms.

The global nutrition community faces an urgent imperative to address inequities in food security while promoting inclusive approaches to nutrition science and practice. The Nutrition Society of Australia’s 2024 Annual Scientific Meeting on ‘Food for All: Promoting Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Nutrition’ addressed this critical challenge through a 4-day programme of cutting-edge, multi-disciplinary research. The conference brought timely focus to key issues, including food access, cultural food practices, nutrition service accessibility, and inclusive research and education approaches. The conference featured public presentations, workshops, oral and poster sessions, symposia, and early career researcher sessions, and emphasised incorporating diverse perspectives while highlighting collaborative approaches to promoting equitable food systems. Coordinated efforts among researchers, healthcare providers, community organisations, industry partners and policymakers remain essential to advance inclusive nutrition practices and ensure equitable access to nutritious food for all populations.

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have negative health consequences. Food insecurity and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are associated with higher UPF intake in U.S. adults, but this has not been examined in U.S. adolescents. This study assesses associations between food security status and SNAP participation with UPF intake in 3,067 adolescents aged 12–19 years with household incomes at or below 300% of the federal poverty line from the 2007–2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. UPF is defined using the Nova classification and measured as a percentage of daily total energy intake (TEI). High food security, marginal food security, or food insecurity status was determined through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s eighteen-item Household Food Security Survey. SNAP participation was deemed affirmative if the household reported receiving SNAP benefits in the last year. Multivariable linear regressions that controlled for TEI and sociodemographic covariates and accounted for the complex survey design examined associations between food insecurity and SNAP participation with UPF intake. In the sample, the prevalence of marginal food security was 15.9%, the prevalence of food insecurity was 33.8%, and the prevalence of SNAP participation was 36.5%. After multivariate adjustment, there were no significant differences in UPF intake by food security status. Adolescents participating in SNAP consumed 2.7% higher UPF intake (95% CI: 0.1%, 5.2%, p = 0.04) compared to adolescents not participating in SNAP. Among lower-income U.S. adolescents, SNAP participation but not food security status was associated with higher UPF intake. Programs and policies promoting the intake of more healthful, minimally processed foods should be strengthened.