Food security – Sufficient food at all times. When people have access to sufficient safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life

To remember the meaning of the term Food Security, use the following mnemonic:

I made sure my food was secure (food security) and it was sufficient to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

I made sure my food was secure and it was sufficient to eat

Food security means sufficient food at all times

Food security, based on the definition by the United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security, means that all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy life.

The modern concept of food security incorporates four main components:

Availability – enough food of sufficient quality must be available
Access – people must be able to acquire sufficient food to be able to eat a healthy, nutritious diet
Utilisation – people must also be able to eat and properly metabolise food (this can be affected by health status, food safety and the means and ability to prepare and cook food
Stability – the availability of, and ability to prepare, food must be constant rather than temporary or subject to fluctuations

While a nation or region may be generally considered to be food secure, certain groups may still suffer from food insecurity (see previous page, Food Insecurity, for more details of this).