Inglês

Read the text below to answer questions 15-20.

What causes hunger?

The world produces enough to feed the entire global

population of 7 billion people. And yet, one person in eight on

the planet goes to bed hungry each night. In some countries,

one child in three is underweight. Why does hunger exist? There

are many reasons for the presence of hunger in the world and

they are often interconnected. Here are six that we think are

important.

Poverty trap

People living in poverty cannot afford nutritious food for

themselves and their families. This makes them weaker and less

able to earn the money that would help them escape poverty

and hunger. This is not just a day-to-day problem: when children

are chronically malnourished, or 'stunted', it can affect their

future income, condemning them to a life of poverty and hunger.

In developing countries, farmers often cannot afford seeds, so

they cannot plant the crops that would provide for their families.

They may have to cultivate crops without the tools and fertilizers

they need. Others have no land or water or education. In short,

the poor are hungry and their hunger traps them in poverty.

Lack of investment in agriculture

Too many developing countries lack key agricultural

infrastructure, such as enough roads, warehouses and irrigation.

The results are high transport costs, lack of storage facilities and

unreliable water supplies. All conspire to limit agricultural yields

and access to food. Investments in improving land management,

using water more efficiently and making more resistant seed

types available can bring big improvements. Research by the

UN Food and Agriculture Organization shows that investment in

agriculture is five times more effective in reducing poverty and

hunger than investment in any other sector.

Climate and weather

Natural disasters such as floods, tropical storms and long

periods of drought are on the increase – with calamitous

consequences for the hungry poor in developing countries.

Drought is one of the most common causes of food shortages in

the world. In 2011, recurrent drought caused crop failures and

heavy livestock losses in parts of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya.

In 2012 there was a similar situation in the Sahel region of West

Africa. In many countries, climate change is exacerbating

already adverse natural conditions. Increasingly, the world's

fertile farmland is under threat from erosion, salination and

desertification. Deforestation by human hands accelerates the

erosion of land which could be used for growing food.

War and displacement

Across the globe, conflicts consistently disrupt farming and

food production. Fighting also forces millions of people to flee

their homes, leading to hunger emergencies as the displaced

find themselves without the means to feed themselves. The

conflict in Syria is a recent example. In war, food sometimes

becomes a weapon. Soldiers will starve opponents into

submission by seizing or destroying food and livestock and

systematically wrecking local markets. Fields are often mined

and water wells contaminated, forcing farmers to abandon their

land. Ongoing conflict in Somalia and the has contributed

significantly to the level of hunger in the two countries. By

comparison, hunger is on the retreat in more peaceful parts of

Africa such as Ghana and Rwanda.

Unstable markets

In recent years, the price of food products has been very

unstable. Roller-coaster food prices make it difficult for the

poorest people to access nutritious food consistently. The poor

need access to adequate food all year round. Price spikes may

temporarily put food out of reach, which can have lasting

consequences for small children. When prices rise, consumers

often shift to cheaper, less-nutritious foods, heightening the risks

of micronutrient deficiencies and other forms of malnutrition.

Food wastage

One third of all food produced (1.3 billion tons) is never

consumed. This food wastage represents a missed opportunity

to improve global food security in a world where one in 8 is

hungry. Producing this food also uses up precious natural

resources that we need to feed the planet. Each year, food that

is produced but not eaten guzzles up a volume of water

equivalent to the annual flow of Russia's Volga River. Producing

this food also adds 3.3 billion tons of greenhouse gases to the

atmosphere, with consequences for the climate and, ultimately,

for food production.

Choose the alternative that presents the phrasal verb that, once conjugated, can properly replace on the retreat” in the sentence below. [a] hunger is on the retreat in more peaceful parts of Africa such as Ghana and Rwanda.”