Global Nutrition Report 2025: Key Findings on Malnutrition and Food Security

Recent Trends

The latest edition of the Global Nutrition Report highlights persistent imbalances across regions. Data suggest that while some forms of undernutrition have stabilized in parts of South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the prevalence of overweight and obesity continues to rise in nearly all income groups. Key shifts include:

• Micronutrient deficiencies remain widespread, particularly for iron, zinc, and vitamin A among women and children.
• Diets high in processed foods are becoming more common in urbanizing areas, even where calorie intake remains insufficient.
• Food-price volatility and supply-chain disruptions have slowed progress in reducing stunting and wasting.

Background

The Global Nutrition Report is produced by an independent expert group and draws on country-level data from UN agencies, national surveys, and academic research. Its 2025 edition builds on the framework of the 2021 Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit and the Sustainable Development Goal 2 target to end all forms of malnutrition by 2030. Early editions focused almost exclusively on undernutrition, but the scope has broadened to include diet-related noncommunicable diseases and the environmental footprint of food systems.

User Concerns

Governments, development organizations, and health practitioners typically examine the report to identify gaps in funding, program coverage, and policy coherence. Common concerns include:

• The lack of standardized data on food insecurity in conflict-affected zones, making regional comparisons difficult.
• The difficulty of coordinating nutrition interventions when budgets are split across health, agriculture, and social protection ministries.
• Mixed signals from global food markets—where lower commodity prices may reduce acute hunger but also encourage consumption of low-nutrient staples.

Likely Impact

The report’s findings are expected to influence national strategy documents and donor priorities. In the near term, countries with rising obesity rates may adopt tighter regulations on marketing of high-sugar and high-fat foods. Meanwhile, donors could reallocate funds toward programs that address both undernutrition and diet-related diseases—a shift often called “double-duty” interventions. However, without more granular subnational data, many recommendations remain difficult to implement on the ground.

What to Watch Next

Stakeholders will be monitoring whether the 2025 report catalyzes new commitments at the next Nutrition for Growth summit, tentatively scheduled for late 2026. Key indicators to track include:

• Adoption of mandatory fortification policies in countries with high micronutrient deficiencies.
• Changes in global food price indices as they relate to dietary diversity.
• Progress on the World Health Assembly global nutrition targets, especially for low birth weight and exclusive breastfeeding.