GLOBALIZATION AND FOOD SECURITY IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

This paper analyses the current situation and recent development in food security in Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs). According FAO, food security can be defined as a situation, when all people have availability and access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs for a healthy life. This paper focuses on indicators falling under four pillars of food security: availability, access, utility, and risk. Food security indicators for all CEECs are described and their development in time is evaluated. The paper specifically focuses on demand for food and demand for quality of food. Demand elasticities for food and their development over time is a good indicator of access to food for different segments of the population. Access to food depends on food prices and incomes, which are significantly affected by the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union as well as development of prices on the global commodity markets. In many CEECs access to food has been improving. However, demand for quality of food is still a problem due to income limitations for low-income segments of the population in all CEECs. This is specifically an issue to be dealt with as diet quality is strongly linked to health. The paper uses Household Budget Survey data for selected countries of CEE.