Today food security is at the forefront of the political agenda, both at the EU and global levels.

Ensuring the availability and access to food for consumers at reasonable prices are objectives  set out in Article 39 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). However,  the achievement of these objectives cannot be taken for granted.

Food security sits at the nexus of society, agricultural production, climate, biodiversity, energy,  health, technology, peace and security. Without farmers and fishers, there is no food on our  table. As such, ensuring a fair standard of living for these communities is of paramount  importance for food production. With high pressure on the global food system, and as food  production is predominantly based on natural processes and yields are inherently uncertain,  vulnerabilities become more relevant in times like the ones we are currently living in. 

Over the years, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has played an important role in making  EU agriculture one of the world's leading food producers, which in turn guarantees the food  security for 450 million European citizens and contributes to global food security. European  farmers are responding to citizens' demands regarding food supply, safety, quality, and  sustainability.European farmers are responding to citizens' demands regarding food security,  safety, quality, and sustainability.In fisheries and aquaculture, the Common Fisheries Policy  (CFP) aims to ensure that fishing and aquaculture activities are sustainable and contribute to  provide Europeans with nutritional food.

At the heart of the European Green Deal, including the Farm to Fork, the Biodiversity and other  strategies, the EU set out a long-term strategic vision on how to change the way we produce,  distribute, and consume food. This vision aims at fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly  food systems, while further strengthening their overall resilience.

In recent years, the effects of climate change and environmental degradation have put food  systems, including agricultural, fisheries and aquaculture production, under increasing pressure  all over the world. Food systems belong among the major drivers of climate change and  biodiversity loss, and the same time, food production is among the most affected by them. In  addition, food systems can provide a wealth of solutions to these challeneges.

Against the backdrop of the global economic disruptions stemming from the COVID-19  pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, trade flows have been interrupted, and this has  negative implications for the supply of key agricultural commodities and inputs. This has  further destabilised global food systems and intensified food insecurity risks and vulnerabilities  across the world This staff working document aims at analysing the main drivers affecting food security from  both the supply and demand sides ( 1 ). Relying on an evidence-based approach, this document  provides a factual assessment of the key drivers and their interlinkages, to inform the ongoing  debate in today’s context. It looks at short and longer term horizons and linkages between the  drivers. Stakeholder views, collected through specific consultations, have been taken into  account in the analysis.