This book looks at food security from a socio-economic perspective. It offers a detailed and systematic examination of food security from its historical backgrounds, concepts and measurements, to the determinants and approaches to achieve food security. The book also introduces the key challenges and root causes of food insecurity.

Through country-specific cases, the book highlights instances of both successful and disastrous national food security management and their outcomes. The invaluable learning experiences of these countries shed light on food security practices, and the straightforward demand-supply framework effectively guides readers in understanding food security issues.

This is an essential resource for anyone who is keen to learn more about food security, particularly researchers and university students who are new to the field. The book endeavours to help us reflect on the current phenomenon and strategize better for the future.

Zhang-Yue Zhou is a Professor at the College of Business, Law, and Governance at James Cook University, Australia. He is Founding Director of the Asian Agribusiness Research Centre at the University of Sydney and the Centre for AusAsia Business Studies at James Cook University. His recent publications include Food Insecurity in Asia: Why Institutions Matter and Achieving Food Security in China: The Challenges Ahead, Routledge.

List of figures. List of tables. List of boxes. Preface. Acknowledgements. List of abbreviations. Food security and related variables.
Part 1: Introduction 1. Food security: concept and measurement 2. Global food security: an overview
Part 2: Food security: demand side 3. Population and food demand 4. Income and food demand 5. Other determinants of food demand
Part 3: Food security: supply side 6. Natural resources and food supply 7. Technological progress and food supply 8. Other determinants of food supply
Part 4: Coordinating demand and supply for food security 9. Balancing food demand and supply for food security: approaches used at the national level 10. Coordinating demand and supply for food security: collaboration at the international level
Part 5: Quest for food security: country experiences 11. Country cases: low and medium level of food security
12. Country cases: high level of food security 13. Why countries' food security levels differ
Part 6: Achieving food security: what ultimately matters 14. Achieving food security: the importance of institutions
Index.