Some Effects of Convulsive Political Scenarios on Food Systems. the Venezuelan Case

Crises in countries outside of war may give rise to complex emergencies in which man-made situations and political issues, among others, lead to humanitarian calamities with high levels of food insecurity and displaced populations. Venezuela is chosen as an example of a country under such circumstances. The number of Ven-ezuelans refugees and migrants worldwide has reached 7.1 million people out of a population of 28.5 million, the vast majority hosted by Latin America and the Caribbean. In Venezuela, all sectors of the economy and actors of the food system have been disrupted by an administration ruling for 23 years during which, declines in oil production, fuel availability and flawed macroeconomic decisions caused relevant drops in food production and deterioration of real income and living conditions generating malnutrition, food insecurity, and forcing survival strategies not only by the population but also by the food industry which has been subjected to strong pressures having to appeal to resilience and reinvention, abandoning innovation. In the midst of this context a humani-tarian space was opened. In this article an attempt is made to describe the effects on the food industry, the academic and scientific sector, the international agencies and NGOs, national humanitarian organizations, as well as the government itself, to feed Venezuelans.