The Food Systems in the Era of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Crisis

TLDR

The WHO declared COVID‑19 a global pandemic, with widespread infections and deaths, raising concerns about food system disruptions, potential food‑borne transmission, and food security for one‑third of the world’s population. The article investigates how food systems are affected by COVID‑19, assessing bioactive food ingredients, potential transmission routes, and the need for sustainable practices to mitigate future crises.

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19, broadly referred to as “coronavirus”) a global pandemic, while thousands of infections and deaths are reported daily. The current article explores the food systems in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. It provides insights about the properties of bioactive ingredients of foods and herbs for the support of the human immune system against infections before discussing the possibility of COVID-19 transmission through the food chain. It also highlights the global food security issues arising from the fact that one-third of the world’s population is on lockdown. Finally, it underlines the importance of sustainability in the food chain in order to avoid or reduce the frequency of relevant food and health crises in the future.