The role of the foreign trade in ensuring food sacurity in the countries of the world: an empirical analysis

Trade in agricultural products is one of the most dynamically developing segments of the global market. The feature of the contemporary stage of world food trade development is that the leading exporters are also the largest food importers, combining the benefits of the international division of labor with the development of domestic agricultural production. In the paper, the role of foreign trade in ensuring food security has been evaluated by comparing the global index of food security and the share of imported food in the domestic market. As a result, the countries of the world have been divided into 4 groups. The first two groups include countries that ensure their citizens a high level of food security through imports, as well as or through their own efficient agricultural production. The third and fourth groups include countries which are not agrarian developed. The problems of hunger and malnutrition in these countries can potentially be solved with the help of foreign trade and increased efforts of the international community.