How Africa Eats

By: David Luke (Editor)

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Paperback | 22 May 2025

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296 Pages

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22.86 x 15.24 x 1.58

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Why do images and reports of starving and malnourished Africans appear so often in the media? What are the actual dimensions of the problem? What has trade and climate got to do with it? In How Africa Eats: Trade, Food Security and Climate Risks, award-winning author David Luke and a team of researchers seek to answer these questions, to explain why Africa struggles with food security and what can be done about it. The intersection between trade, agriculture policies, and climate risks is fundamental to this enquiry.

Using a data-led approach, this book examines in detail what Africa eats and where and how it is produced. It investigates how finance, investment, foreign aid, institutions, actors and capacities interact with policies in holding Africa back from becoming an agricultural powerhouse despite having 60 per cent of the world's arable land area.

The book evaluates how climate change exacerbates the continent's challenges and scrutinises the sustainability of production systems in the face of environmental volatility. Experts in trade policy, international law and development unpack the barriers that currently limit the growth of intra-African food trade, including the role of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and model the expected impact of the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on agricultural trade.

The extent of food deprivation in Africa is sobering. The United Nations estimates that a fifth of the African population is undernourished, and a quarter live with the day-to-day experience of severe food insecurity. How Africa Eats provides a vital, open access resource for academics, policymakers and trade experts seeking to address the continent's food insecurity in the face of urgent threats from climate change, trade barriers and complex policy challenges.

Industry Reviews

"This bold and timely book dismantles the myth that Africa's food insecurity is a simple question of production. It exposes the deeper story-trade barriers, climate shocks, and fragmented markets-and makes a compelling case for rethinking how food systems are governed and connected across the continent. Grounded in solid evidence and forward-looking in its proposals, it's a must-read for those who want to move beyond rhetoric and tackle the structural roots of the crisis."

Carlos Lopes, Professor at the Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance, University of Cape Town

"Africa is at a crossroads: the decisions taken in the coming years will be key to the continent's ability to shape resilient food systems. This book sheds much-needed light on Africa-led policy frameworks, highlighting their relevance, their limitations and the conditions under which they can help secure the right to food for all. It is a timely resource for practitioners and advocates working to end poverty and hunger across the continent."

Fati N'Zi-Hassane, Africa Director, Oxfam International

"Professor David Luke and his team of luminary scholars have provided us with a very valuable resource for tackling perhaps the most pressing existential threats on the continental arising from climate change and food and nutrition insecurity. Following an analytical odyssey, the book ends with precise policy suggestions in a chapter that should be a vade me cum for leaders in international Government, industry, academia, civil society and international organisations."

Francis Mangeni, Advisor, Office of the Secretary General, African Continental Free Trade Area

"This book is an important contribution to our understanding of food systems in Africa at a time when global shocks continue to undermine progress made on addressing hunger. The authors systematically lay out the multifaceted nature of food and agriculture systems in Africa, thereby offering an analysis that is comprehensive and distinct from much of the existing literature. The authors should be commended for conveying the reality that both researchers and policy makers long suspected to be true, that addressing Africa's food security challenges will also unravel complexities around trade policy, supply chains, industrial linkages, institutional inertia and environmental sustainability."

Dr. Zainab Usman, Director of the Africa Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington D.C.

"Africa should feed itself and be a global breadbasket, yet the continent struggles with food availability and stability, with a quarter of its population facing hunger. How Africa Eats examines trade, agriculture, and climate policies and provides suggestions on how to achieve food security on the continent. This accessible book is relevant for policy makers, educators, researchers, and students who seek a better understanding of what needs to be done to overcome food insecurity in Africa."

Dr Alex Vines OBE, Africa Director, Chatham House

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