ABSTRACT
In recent times, food quality has been gaining importance all over the world, even when the reasons for this may differ from country to country. Every country, or sometimes even the regions within a country, has certain specific issues that go beyond food quantity and safety. Focus on food security has been central in most countries of Asia and Africa, but this is shifting in emphasis from quantity to quality, as malnutrition and undernutrition are issues that are not only confined to quantity but are impacted by the quality of the food as well. In countries from the American and European continents, quantity may not be an issue of concern, but safety and nutrition have been gaining more importance. This is because poor diets are resulting in various lifestyle diseases and obesity. Food may be safe, but it still may not be able to support a healthy body. Food safety is but one aspect of the overall quality of food, an issue that is gaining increasing attention all over the world. Though availability and access to food remain critical components of food security in most parts of the world, especially in Asia and Africa, the focus is shifting from quantity to quality. High-profile cases involving food safety have drawn the most attention, but obesity and undernutrition/malnutrition are of equal concern. Food quality has become a rising concern across the globe, not least because food safety scandals have been a regular occurrence in recent years. There is a growing recognition that the focus on quantity has been at the expense of quality. In the 1970s and 1980s, most parts of the world, especially the densely populated Asia, were addressing the issue of whether there was enough food to feed the increasing population. Emphasis was placed on controlling the population and also improving production and productivity in agriculture. This race for increased production resulted in the increased and indiscriminate use of pesticides and antibiotics. This so-called green revolution also resulted in changing food patterns in most of the countries, and a variety of foods and local crops were replaced by uniform crops, creating more nutritional imbalances. One challenge of this focus on high productivity and yield is that the nutrition side has been neglected. Undernutrition and malnutrition are usually terms used in reference to those who do not get enough to eat, or do not get enough of the necessary nutrients. But imbalances in food habits and patterns are the reasons for many lifestyle diseases as well. Where food is adequate in quantity, the problem of balanced diets is causing concern. Obesity is becoming a major issue in many countries, one that is increasingly linked to the consumption of more processed foods that are high in salt, fat, and sugar. More affluent nations such as the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and Japan are starting to think about obesity in terms of preventative healthcare. Some of the countries that are struggling with issues of food security such as India and the Philippines are also experiencing an obesity epidemic. High levels of income inequality have driven the situation, whereby the excess intake of calories coexists with undernutrition. A large number of deficiency diseases are also causing concern, as these result in serious medical conditions. Fortification of food to address iron, iodine, or any 92other kind of deficiencies is becoming very common to remove imbalances in the diet. Despite healthy economic growth rates and an overall decline in poverty in South Asia and Africa, micronutrient malnutrition remains pervasive—and not just among the poorest or most vulnerable (United Nations, 2011). Food quality has become a rising concern for people who wish to have a healthy and balanced diet, and also where food safety scandals have been a regular occurrence in recent years. Therefore, “food quality” is a comprehensive term that includes all the required parameters essential for maintaining the safety and security of food.
