Latin America and the Caribbean

Global political and economic trends, including worrisome trade developments, as well as domestic change affected the economies and food and nutrition security of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in 2018. According to recent estimates, the number of undernourished people in the region increased for the third consecutive year, reaching approximately 39 million, an increase of 400,000 since 2016. A primary cause was the deterioration in the food security situation in Venezuela. At the same time, the number of obese individuals in the region increased by more than 3 million annually over this period, and overweight and obesity have emerged as the main malnutrition and health problem.