ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Global population, having exceeded 6 billion in 2000, is expected to reach 9 billion in the next fifty years (James, 2000). This will aggravate the food insecurity in the developing countries. Despite technological advances in food production, a staggering 840 million people, comprising 13% of the world population, including 200 million children, are poor, food-insecure and mainly concentrated in the developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America. Disparity across the population in terms of economic access makes even the available food unreachable to the poor. The challenge before the developing world is to provide affordable low-cost nutrition. This has to be achieved both by an increase in the food production on the arable land available and by making the food production systems sustainable, i.e. maximizing production without bringing about environmental degradation. The elusive goal of achieving food security depends upon the complex interplay of several political, social and technical factors.
