To find out more about all the issues touched on in this briefing, read the AlertNet resource file on chronic hunger and famine. As well as in-depth articles on food aid and emergencies, it includes a tipsheet on how to portray famine victims with dignity, and factboxes on hunger, the worst famines of the 20th century and food jargon.

To track the latest food emergencies and developing crises around the world, visit FEWS NET.

Another useful tracking agency is the Food Insecurity and Vulnerability Information and Mapping Systems. It gives a country-by-country round-up of national monitoring systems and useful links. The website also has some useful background papers on food issues, in its publications section.

The U.N. World Food Programme website gives a country-by-country overview of the food situation, WFP's activities and a local WFP contact, as well as plenty of global facts and figures. Several websites have excellent food-related maps. WFP has an interactive map you can use to view the world's hunger hotspots.

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation has a huge amount of information on every aspect of food production and agriculture. The FAO also produces annual reports on food security, to monitor progress on food and agriculture. And it has produced some food-related maps, including trade in food, child nutrition, and which countries eat the most.

Another U.N. agency, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) works to boost food production and ease rural poverty by improving poor peoples' access to financial services, markets, technology, land and other natural resources.

For in-depth research on hunger-related issues, the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) runs a comprehensive website and produces a Global Hunger Index jointly with Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe, listing countries according to levels of hunger.

Finally, for in-depth research on the impact of humanitarian interventions, visit the Emergency Nutrition Network site.