EDITORIAL — Water is life, water is food

World Food Day is marked today as millions of Filipinos continue to suffer from involuntary hunger along with malnutrition and undernourishment, which have been blamed for stunting and poor academic performance.

Despite being largely agricultural, the Philippines remains heavily reliant on importations of basic agricultural commodities, from its staple rice to sugar and various types of meats. Domestic dairy production is so low that millions of families cannot afford high-nutrition baby formula and growing-up milk for children.

In the past year, the biggest problems in the country, apart from the surge in oil prices due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, were mainly food-related: supply shortages and consequently price spikes in agricultural items including sugar, dressed chicken, eggs and onions. Food inflation has accounted for much of the consistently high inflation rate. In recent months, rice prices have jumped, prompting a half-baked effort to cap the prices of two varieties.

Experts have warned that El Niño could worsen food insecurity in the coming months. The weather phenomenon can intensify flooding during the wet season and cause drought during the dry season. It may aggravate the global problem of freshwater sources, which is the focus of this year’s observance of World Food Day.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization points out that while water covers about 71 percent of the Earth’s surface, only 2.5 percent of the water is fresh and suitable for drinking and agriculture. The FAO points out that agriculture accounts for 72 percent of global freshwater utilization.

In the past decades, however, freshwater resources per person have declined by 20 percent. The FAO attributes this to rapid population growth, urbanization, economic development, climate change,  overextraction of groundwater, pollution and poor water management. These problems can still be reversed, with planned development and efficient water utilization and management.

Proper freshwater allocation can also improve agricultural production and boost food security. The country can take to heart this year’s theme for World Food Day: “Water is life, water is food. Leave no one behind.” And policy makers can heed the warning of the FAO on freshwater: “We risk stretching this precious resource to a point of no return.”