ALBERT

Description: Malnutrition is a global challenge with huge social and economic costs; nearly every country faces a public health challenge, whether from undernutrition, overweight/obesity, and/or micronutrient deficiencies. Malnutrition is a multisectoral, multi-level problem that results from the complex interplay between household and individual decision-making, agri-food, health, and environmental systems that determine access to services and resources, and related policy processes. This paper reviews the theory and recent qualitative evidence (particularly from 2010 to 2016) in the public health and nutrition literature, on the role that agriculture plays in improving nutrition, how food systems are changing rapidly due to globalization, trade liberalization, and urbanization, and the implications this has for nutrition globally. The paper ends by summarizing recommendations that emerge from this research related to (i) knowledge, evidence, and communications, (ii) politics, governance, and policy, and (iii) capacity, leadership, and financing. A mother tends to her village garden in Burkina Faso. This review addresses the global challenge presented by agriculture–nutrition disconnects that prevail in many countries. The authors comprehensively review the theory and evidence related to agriculture and food systems and their relationship to, and impact on, nutrition outcomes, not only in relation to undernutrition but also regarding increasing problems of overweight and obesity. The paper applies a framework to characterize enabling (or disabling) environments for nutrition and to structure a set of key recommendations on how to, practically and more effectively, leverage agriculture and food systems for nutrition.