Infographic of the Week: The Two Sides of the Food Crisis

[Food+Tech Connect will be featuring an “Infographic of the Week” each Friday, featuring and analyzing one visualization about food or agriculture published in the last week.  Please send ideas to beth@foodtechconnect.com]

The “Food Crisis” is a complex phenomena taking place on a global scale, with many different effects and impacts on state, local and individual levels.  The Public Health Program created an infographic to look at “The Two Sides of the Food Crisis,” and to untangle the many factors causing the crisis.

While a fascinating graphic based on solid data from some of the world’s most reputable sources on the subject, the title is misleading.

Unfortunately, there are many sides to the crisis, and in many ways “waste and want” (the two gauges used by Public Health) are unrelated.  We cannot send our uneaten broccoli to Somalia for a hungry child to consume, and “waste” in developing nations comes in a very different form than it does in developed nations.

Luckily, the graphic points out the biggest causes of waste under “factors” – potentially fodder for another informational graphic (the FAO in fact lists studies of such waste, like this one on Milk Spoilage in Eastern Africa)

Additionally, the information for the graphic comes from a variety of top sources, from journalistic outfits like the New York Times, to large UN organizations like the Food and Agriculture Organization.  This gives the graphic credibility and depth – an essential part of any visualization.

/ via Fast Company