Starvation Statistics
According to estimates by the FAO there were 925 million under- or malnourished people in the world in 2010. This was a decrease from an estimate of 1023 million malnourished people in 2009. In 2007, 923 million people were reported as being undernourished, an increase of 80 million since 1990-92. It has also been recorded that the world already produces enough food to support the world's population.
As the definitions of starving and malnourished people are different, the number of starving people is different from that of malnourished. Generally, much fewer people are starving, than are malnourished. The numbers here may provide some indication, but should not be quoted as a number of starving people.
The share of malnourished and of starving people in the world has been more or less continually decreasing for at least several centuries. This is due to an increasing supply of food and to overall gains in economic efficiency. In 40 years, the share of malnourished people in the developing world has been more than halved. The share of starving people has decreased even faster. This improvement is expected to continue in the future.
| Year | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2004 | 2007 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share of undernourished people in the developing world | 37 % | 28 % | 20 % | 16 % | 17 % | 16 % |
Read more about this topic: Starvation
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