Food security was a major focus at COP 30 in Brazil this week, as countries try to adapt to the impact climate change is having on food production.
According to the most recent Global Food Security Index, Ireland is one of most food-secure countries, but a more volatile climate and global uncertainty could pose a challenge in the future.
A lot of EU and Irish Government funding is going into research and innovation in terms food security, with much of it being carried out at the Teagasc Food Research Centre in Ashtown in Dublin.
The main focus of study is on reducing food waste and introducing new crops into the food chain.
Prepared Consumer Food Centre Manager with Teagasc Shay Hannon said the research centre has "a number of projects in this space", particularly looking at fruit and vegetable products that are rejected by retailers and consumers due to being an odd shape and looking abnormal.
Mr Hannon said: "the Rosetta project in particular is looking to develop new food products from food waste - essentially would have gone in the bin.
"We're really trying to improve that ... even the term 'waste' we're trying to remove that from language. We call it by-product instead.
"There's inherent value there, so we're trying to develop recipes as part of that project that will be rollout then to industry."
Any fruit and veg that is abnormally shaped will not be sold in shops. Teagasc takes these products and turns them into different ones that consumers will buy.
For example, weirdly shaped carrots are being made into juice, puree, and powders that might also be used in other foods.
Another area of research is around finding new, sustainable protein sources.
The centre studies proteins that grow well around Europe, and tries them out here, and if they grow well in the Irish climate researchers look at how they could be integrated into the food chain.
Some proteins that grow especially well here are peas and fava beans.
Dr Eimear Gallagher from Teagasc Food Research Centre said that for fava beans, they start by germinating them "to decrease any anti-nutritional compounds.
"Then they are processed ... we remove the hull, which is the outer shell of the fava bean, because that contains tannins, which can be very bitter.
"Then we mill this to make fava bean flour. We're looking at the composition of the flour, the safety of the flour, the functional properties to make sure that it will work well in food innovation and in food formulations."
Bakery products, snacks, and breakfast cereals are some of the potential food items fava beans can be used in.
"We're looking at removing some of the wheat flour in bakery products and replacing it with Irish fava bean flour," Ms Gallagher added.
Aside from the science of food security, it's also a consideration at farm level - where food production starts.
Talamh Beo is a farmer-led organisation advocating for community-led food systems with minimal impact on the environment.
Diarmuid Ryan from Collistown, Co Meath is a member of the organisation. He is a part-time farmer with 77 sheep, a small vegetable patch, and has just started an apple orchard.
Mr Ryan's view is that to achieve a balance with food security, there needs to be a local emphasis as well as more support is needed for farmers to diversify.
"Locally produced food is about as secure as you can get. If your food is coming from the same country, the same county, or down the road from you, it's much more secure in terms of sustainable supply," he said.
"We need a kind of a diversity. We can't just focus entirely on beef for example, because we import so much of the vegetables that we also depend on.
"There's a balance to be had. It is perfectly possible to produce all the food we need to eat, and to work with nature on that."
