The Social Production of Hunger and the Brazilian Case

This study explores the social production of hunger, highlighting the contrast between technological advances and the persistence of the problem on a global scale. Despite significant progress in agricultural technologies during the last decades of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, as well as advances in transportation systems and international trade that have facilitated food supply in areas with seasonal challenges, hunger continues to exist at various levels in all regions of the world. This underscores that the issue is primarily political and social, rather than technical or economic. In 2021, between 702 and 828 million people, about 9% of the world population, faced hunger. In Brazil, one of the world's largest agricultural producers, hunger is a historical and ongoing challenge. Despite a record harvest in 2022, with a production of 263. 8 million tons on 90. 4 million hectares, generating a production value of R 830. 1 billion, 70. 3 million people still suffered from moderate food insecurity, and 21. 1 million faced severe food insecurity, a situation that includes experiencing hunger.