Future direction
Fifteen percent of the Caatinga municipalities (n = 210) had forest
cover lower than 20%. Forest restoration is a legal obligation in rural
properties in Caatinga when native vegetation covers less than 20% of
the property area, or when the buffer areas of forest around
water-resources (i.e., Areas of Permanent Preservation - APP) are
degraded (Brasil,
2012). The legal obligation can be seen as an opportunity to promote
co-benefits between restoration and food security by the generation of
jobs and income related to forest restoration
(Mesquita et
al., 2010). Forest restoration should directly support food security
since it can promote stability for food production through water and
soil protection
(Soares-Filho et
al., 2014) or improve the availability of food resources through
agroforestry systems
(Chamberlain et
al., 2020) . Variables related to protection of forests appear as one
of the dimensions of our index (PC 10 in 2006 and PC 3 and 4 in 2017 -
Table 2 and Supplementary Table 2 and 3) while variables related to the
lack of protection contributed negatively to food security (PC 12 in
2006 and PC 9 in 2017). Thus, forest restoration in municipalities can
help to increase food security mainly if productive restoration such as
agroforests are implemented
(Yang et al.,
2020). Then, it is possible to restore many deforested areas without
competing with food production and also creating opportunities to
improve access and stability of food systems. The priority of
restoration should be given to low-income farmers and to municipalities
with high levels of poverty and deforestation, since these are the
places where it should have the greatest positive impact in increasing
food security and also as a matter of environmental justice
(Cousins, 2021; Reij
& Garrity, 2016).
On the other hand, promoting restoration in municipalities with high
forest cover could lead to more trade-offs with food security than
co-benefits. In this situation, policies aiming to increase food
security should attack social inequality
(Misselhorn et
al., 2012) and take advantage of large tracts of native vegetation to
maintain it under legal protection, whereas protected areas can help to
improve people’s well-being and food security
(Naidoo et al.,
2019).
Conclusion
We highlighted that native vegetation should be taken into account when
thinking about food security and sustainable food systems. Forests play
an important role in maintaining the stability and productivity of the
local food system
(Chamberlain et
al., 2020; Melo et al., 2020), but are not usually addressed in
food security studies
(FAO 2013; Ozturk
2015; Gubert et al. 2017; but see Vysochyna et al. 2020).
Our approach shows that there are no intrinsic, unavoidable trade-offs
between forest cover increase and food security. In fact, as poverty and
inequality were the main source of food insecurity in Caatinga,
well-designed ecological restoration programmes can help to alleviate
poverty by creating jobs and promoting more income to rural families.
Although restoration is an important ally to reduce poverty, this is not
a solution for food insecurity in Caatinga and other drylands. There is
still an urgent need for social policies that directly aim to reduce
poverty in all its dimensions
(UNDP & OPHI, 2020)
which will greatly improve food security. Those policies should promote
ways out of poverty that do not compromise the already over-pressured
natural systems (see
Chamberlain et al. 2020; Cousins 2021 for examples), they should
be focused in the most socially vulnerable and environmentally degraded
municipalities, such the ones with low forest cover and low food
security or the ones that had negative synergies (lose-lose) between
forest and food. Otherwise, those policies might not reduce poverty and
food insecurity where it is most needed.
References
Albuquerque UP de,
Araújo EL, Castro CC, Alves RRN. 2017. People and Natural Resources in
the Caatinga. Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest Region in
South America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Alencar L, Rodrigues,
AA, Parry L, Melo FPL. 2022. Forest security as a fourth dimension of
the water-energy-food nexus: empirical evidence from the Brazilian
Caatinga. The Water-Energy- Food NEXUS: What the Brazilian
Research has to Say. University of São Paulo: São Paulo, Brazil
Alexander P,
Rounsevell MDA, Dislich C, Dodson JR, Engström K, Moran D. 2015. Drivers
for global agricultural land use change: The nexus of diet, population,
yield and bioenergy. Global Environmental Change 35:
138–147. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2015.08.011
Andrade EM de, Aquino
D do N, Chaves LCG, Lopes FB. 2017. Water as Capital and Its Uses in the
Caatinga. Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest Region in
South America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Antongiovanni M,
Venticinque EM, Fonseca CR. 2018. Fragmentation patterns of the Caatinga
drylands. Landscape Ecology 33: 1353–1367. DOI:
10.1007/s10980-018-0672-6
Antongiovanni M,
Venticinque EM, Matsumoto M, Fonseca CR. 2020. Chronic anthropogenic
disturbance on Caatinga dry forest fragments. Journal of Applied
Ecology 57: 2064–2074. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13686
Arroyo‐Rodríguez V,
Fahrig L, Tabarelli M, Watling JI, Tischendorf L, Benchimol M, Cazetta
E, Faria D, Leal IR, Melo FPL, Morante‐Filho JC, Santos BA,
Arasa‐Gisbert R, Arce‐Peña N, Cervantes‐López MJ, Cudney‐Valenzuela S,
Galán‐Acedo C, San‐José M, Vieira ICG, Slik JWF, Nowakowski AJ,
Tscharntke T. 2020. Designing optimal human-modified landscapes for
forest biodiversity conservation. Ecology Letters. DOI:
10.1111/ele.13535
Bahar NHA, Lo M,
Sanjaya M, Van Vianen J, Alexander P, Ickowitz A, Sunderland T. 2020.
Meeting the food security challenge for nine billion people in 2050:
What impact on forests? Global Environmental Change 62:
102056. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2020.102056
Barbier EB. 2020. Long
run agricultural land expansion, booms and busts. Land Use Policy93: 103808. DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.01.011
Barbier EB, Hochard
JP. 2018. Land degradation and poverty. Nature Sustainability1: 623–631. DOI: 10.1038/s41893-018-0155-4
Barrett CB. 2010.
Measuring Food Insecurity. Science 327: 5
Baudron F, Tomscha SA,
Powell B, Groot JCJ, Gergel SE, Sunderland T. 2019. Testing the Various
Pathways Linking Forest Cover to Dietary Diversity in Tropical
Landscapes. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems 3.
DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2019.00097
Brasil. 2012.Lei de Proteção da Vegetação Nativa.
Burchi F, De Muro P.
2016. From food availability to nutritional capabilities: Advancing food
security analysis. Food Policy 60: 10–19. DOI:
10.1016/j.foodpol.2015.03.008
Chamberlain JL, Darr
D, Meinhold K. 2020. Rediscovering the Contributions of Forests and
Trees to Transition Global Food Systems. Forests 11:
1098. DOI: 10.3390/f11101098
Cousins JJ. 2021.
Justice in nature-based solutions: Research and pathways.Ecological Economics 180: 106874. DOI:
10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106874
Cutter SL, Boruff BJ,
Shirley WL. 2003. Social Vulnerability to Environmental Hazards*.Social Science Quarterly 84: 242–261. DOI:
10.1111/1540-6237.8402002
de Fraiture C,
Wichelns D. 2010. Satisfying future water demands for agriculture.Agricultural Water Management 97: 502–511. DOI:
10.1016/j.agwat.2009.08.008
Devendra C. 1999.
Goats: Challenges for Increased Productivity and Improved Livelihoods.Outlook on Agriculture 28: 215–226. DOI:
10.1177/003072709902800404
Devereux S. 2016.
Social protection for enhanced food security in sub-Saharan Africa.Food Policy 60: 52–62. DOI:
10.1016/j.foodpol.2015.03.009
Ericksen PJ. 2008.
Conceptualizing food systems for global environmental change research.Global Environmental Change 18: 234–245. DOI:
10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2007.09.002
Fan S, Brzeska J.
2016. Sustainable food security and nutrition: Demystifying conventional
beliefs. Global Food Security 11: 11–16. DOI:
10.1016/j.gfs.2016.03.005
FAO (ed). 2013.The multiple dimensions of food security. FAO: Rome
FAO. 2022. The
State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022. FAO. DOI:
10.4060/cc0639en
FAO I. 2020. The
State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020: Transforming
food systems for affordable healthy diets. FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and
WHO: Rome, Italy. DOI: 10.4060/ca9692enAlso Available in:Chinese Spanish
Arabic French Russian
Fisher M, Chaudhury M,
McCusker B. 2010. Do Forests Help Rural Households Adapt to Climate
Variability? Evidence from Southern Malawi. World Development38: 1241–1250. DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2010.03.005
Foley JA, Ramankutty
N, Brauman KA, Cassidy ES, Gerber JS, Johnston M, Mueller ND, O’Connell
C, Ray DK, West PC, Balzer C, Bennett EM, Carpenter SR, Hill J, Monfreda
C, Polasky S, Rockström J, Sheehan J, Siebert S, Tilman D, Zaks DPM.
2011. Solutions for a cultivated planet. Nature 478:
337–342. DOI: 10.1038/nature10452
Godfray HC, Beddington
J, Crute I, Haddad L, Lawrence D, Muir J, Pretty J, Robinson S, Thomas
S, Toulmin C. 2010. Food Security: The Challenge of Feeding 9 Billion
People. Science 327
Gubert MB, dos Santos
SMC, Santos LMP, Pérez-Escamilla R. 2017. A Municipal-level analysis of
secular trends in severe food insecurity in Brazil between 2004 and
2013. Global Food Security 14: 61–67. DOI:
10.1016/j.gfs.2017.03.004
Hummell BM, Cutter SL,
Emrich CT. 2016. Social Vulnerability to Natural Hazards in Brazil.International Journal of Disaster Risk Science 7:
111–122. DOI: 10.1007/s13753-016-0090-9
IBGE (ed). 2017.Classificação e caracterização dos espaços rurais e urbanos do
Brasil: uma primeira aproximação. IBGE, Instituto Brasileiro de
Geografia e Estatística: Rio de Janeiro
Ickowitz A, Powell B,
Salim MA, Sunderland TCH. 2014. Dietary quality and tree cover in
Africa. Global Environmental Change 24: 287–294. DOI:
10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2013.12.001
IPBES. 2019. The
global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystems services. IPBES
secretariat: Bonn, Germany
Jagger P, Cheek JZ,
Miller D, Ryan C, Shyamsundar P, Sills E. 2022. The Role of Forests and
Trees in Poverty Dynamics. Forest Policy and Economics140: 102750. DOI: 10.1016/j.forpol.2022.102750
Johnson KB, Jacob A,
Brown ME. 2013. Forest cover associated with improved child health and
nutrition: evidence from the Malawi Demographic and Health Survey and
satellite data. Global Health: Science and Practice 1:
237–248. DOI: 10.9745/GHSP-D-13-00055
Kah HK. 2017. ‘Boko
Haram is Losing, But so is Food Production’: Conflict and Food
Insecurity in Nigeria and Cameroon. Africa Development 20
Khan S, Hanjra MA, Mu
J. 2009. Water management and crop production for food security in
China: A review. Agricultural Water Management 96:
349–360. DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2008.09.022
Klassen S, Murphy S.
2020. Equity as both a means and an end: Lessons for resilient food
systems from COVID-19. World Development 136: 105104.
DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2020.105104
Lambin EF, Gibbs HK,
Heilmayr R, Carlson KM, Fleck LC, Garrett RD, le Polain de Waroux Y,
McDermott CL, McLaughlin D, Newton P, Nolte C, Pacheco P, Rausch LL,
Streck C, Thorlakson T, Walker NF. 2018. The role of supply-chain
initiatives in reducing deforestation. Nature Climate Change8: 109–116. DOI: 10.1038/s41558-017-0061-1
Latawiec AE,
Strassburg BB, Brancalion PH, Rodrigues RR, Gardner T. 2015. Creating
space for large‐scale restoration in tropical agricultural landscapes.Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
Liu J, Liang M, Li L,
Long H, De Jong W. 2017. Comparative study of the forest transition
pathways of nine Asia-Pacific countries. Forest Policy and
Economics 76: 25–34. DOI: 10.1016/j.forpol.2016.03.007
Melo FPL. 2017. The
Socio-Ecology of the Caatinga: Understanding How Natural Resource Use
Shapes an Ecosystem. Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest
Region in South America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Melo FPL, Parry L,
Brancalion PHS, Pinto SRR, Freitas J, Manhães AP, Meli P, Ganade G,
Chazdon RL. 2020. Adding forests to the water–energy–food nexus.Nature Sustainability. DOI: 10.1038/s41893-020-00608-z
Melo FPL, Parry L,
Brancalion PHS, Pinto SRR, Freitas J, Manhães AP, Meli P, Ganade G,
Chazdon RL. 2021. Adding forests to the water–energy–food nexus.Nature Sustainability 4: 85–92. DOI:
10.1038/s41893-020-00608-z
Mesquita CAB,
Holvorcem CGD, Lyrio CH, de Menezes PD, da Silva Dias JD, Azevedo JF.
2010. COOPLANTAR: A Brazilian Initiative to Integrate Forest Restoration
with Job and Income Generation in Rural Areas. Ecological
Restoration 28: 199–207. DOI: 10.3368/er.28.2.199
Meyfroidt P. 2018.
Trade-offs between environment and livelihoods: Bridging the global land
use and food security discussions. Global Food Security16: 9–16. DOI: 10.1016/j.gfs.2017.08.001
Miller DC, Hajjar R.
2020. Forests as pathways to prosperity: Empirical insights and
conceptual advances. World Development 13
Miller DC, Ordoñez PJ,
Brown SE, Forrest S, Nava NJ, Hughes K, Baylis K. 2020. The impacts of
agroforestry on agricultural productivity, ecosystem services, and human
well‐being in low‐and middle‐income countries: An evidence and gap map.Campbell Systematic Reviews 16. DOI: 10.1002/cl2.1066
Misselhorn A, Aggarwal
P, Ericksen P, Gregory P, Horn-Phathanothai L, Ingram J, Wiebe K. 2012.
A vision for attaining food security. Current Opinion in
Environmental Sustainability 4: 7–17. DOI:
10.1016/j.cosust.2012.01.008
Nahid N, Lashgarara F,
Farajolah Hosseini SJ, Mirdamadi SM, Rezaei-Moghaddam K. 2021.
Determining the Resilience of Rural Households to Food Insecurity during
Drought Conditions in Fars Province, Iran. Sustainability13: 8384. DOI: 10.3390/su13158384
Naidoo R, Gerkey D,
Hole D, Pfaff A, Ellis AM, Golden CD, Herrera D, Johnson K, Mulligan M,
Ricketts TH, Fisher B. 2019. Evaluating the impacts of protected areas
on human well-being across the developing world. Science Advances5: eaav3006. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aav3006
O’Hara S, Toussaint
EC. 2021. Food access in crisis: Food security and COVID-19.Ecological Economics 180: 106859. DOI:
10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106859
Ozturk I. 2015.
Sustainability in the food-energy-water nexus: Evidence from BRICS
(Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China, and South Africa)
countries. Energy 93: 999–1010. DOI:
10.1016/j.energy.2015.09.104
Parraguez-Vergara E,
Contreras B, Clavijo N, Villegas V, Paucar N, Ther F. 2018. Does
indigenous and campesino traditional agriculture have anything to
contribute to food sovereignty in Latin America? Evidence from Chile,
Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico. 17
Powell B, Hall J,
Johns T. 2011. Forest cover, use and dietary intake in the East Usambara
Mountains, Tanzania. International Forestry Review 13:
305–317. DOI: 10.1505/146554811798293944
Pretty J, Bharucha ZP.
2014. Sustainable intensification in agricultural systems. Annals
of Botany 114: 1571–1596. DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcu205
Queiroz LP, Cardoso D,
Fernandes MF, Moro MF. 2017. Diversity and Evolution of Flowering Plants
of the Caatinga Domain. Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest
Region in South America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Rasmussen LV, Fagan
ME, Ickowitz A, Wood SLR, Kennedy G, Powell B, Baudron F, Gergel S, Jung
S, Smithwick EAH, Sunderland T, Wood S, Rhemtulla JM. 2020. Forest
pattern, not just amount, influences dietary quality in five African
countries. Global Food Security 25: 100331. DOI:
10.1016/j.gfs.2019.100331
Reij C, Garrity D.
2016. Scaling up farmer-managed natural regeneration in Africa to
restore degraded landscapes. Biotropica 48: 834–843.
DOI: 10.1111/btp.12390
Rodrigues ASL, Ewers
RM, Parry L, Souza C, Verissimo A, Balmford A. 2009. Boom-and-Bust
Development Patterns Across the Amazon Deforestation Frontier.Science 324: 1435–1437. DOI: 10.1126/science.1174002
Rosenstock TS, Dawson
IK, Aynekulu E, Chomba S, Degrande A, Fornace K, Jamnadass R, Kimaro A,
Kindt R, Lamanna C, Malesu M, Mausch K, McMullin S, Murage P, Namoi N,
Njenga M, Nyoka I, Paez Valencia AM, Sola P, Shepherd K, Steward P.
2019. A Planetary Health Perspective on Agroforestry in Sub-Saharan
Africa. One Earth 1: 330–344. DOI:
10.1016/j.oneear.2019.10.017
Sampaio EVSB, Menezes
RSC, Sampaio, Y de SB, Freitas ADS de. 2017. Sustainable Agricultural
Uses in the Caatinga. Caatinga: the largest tropical dry forest
region in South America. Springer,: Cham, Switzerland
Schütz L, Gattinger A,
Meier M, Müller A, Boller T, Mäder P, Mathimaran N. 2018. Improving Crop
Yield and Nutrient Use Efficiency via Biofertilization—A Global
Meta-analysis. Frontiers in Plant Science 8
Sena A, Freitas C,
Feitosa Souza P, Alpino T, Pedroso M, Corvalan C, Barcellos C, Carneiro
F. 2018. Drought in the Semiarid Region of Brazil: Exposure,
Vulnerabilities and Health Impacts from the Perspectives of Local
Actors. PLoS Currents. DOI:
10.1371/currents.dis.c226851ebd64290e619a4d1ed79c8639
Silva JMC da, Barbosa
LC. 2017. Impact of Human Activities on the Caatinga. Caatinga:
the largest tropical dry forest region in South Americad. Springer:
Cham, Switzerland
Silva JMC da, Barbosa
LC, Leal IR, Tabarelli M. 2017. The Caatinga: Understanding the
Challenges. Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest Region in
South America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Soares-Filho B, Rajao
R, Macedo M, Carneiro A, Costa W, Coe M, Rodrigues H, Alencar A. 2014.
Cracking Brazil’s Forest Code. Science 344: 363–364.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1246663
Swift TL, Hannon SJ.
2010. Critical thresholds associated with habitat loss: a review of the
concepts, evidence, and applications. Biological Reviews85: 35–53. DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-185X.2009.00093.x
Tabarelli M, Leal IR,
Scarano FR, Silva JMC da. 2017. The Future of the Caatinga.Caatinga: The Largest Tropical Dry Forest Region in South
America. Springer: Cham, Switzerland
Tendall DM, Joerin J,
Kopainsky B, Edwards P, Shreck A, Le QB, Kruetli P, Grant M, Six J.
2015. Food system resilience: Defining the concept. Global Food
Security 6: 17–23. DOI: 10.1016/j.gfs.2015.08.001
UNDP, OPHI. 2020.Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2020.
Vysochyna A, Stoyanets
N, Mentel G, Olejarz T. 2020. Environmental Determinants of a Country’s
Food Security in Short-Term and Long-Term Perspectives.Sustainability 12: 4090. DOI: 10.3390/su12104090
Weinhold D, Killick E,
Reis EJ. 2013. Soybeans, Poverty and Inequality in the Brazilian Amazon.World Development 52: 132–143. DOI:
10.1016/j.worlddev.2012.11.016
Yang KF, Gergel SE,
Baudron F. 2020. Forest restoration scenarios produce synergies for
agricultural production in southern Ethiopia. Agriculture,
Ecosystems & Environment 295: 106888. DOI:
10.1016/j.agee.2020.106888