Why study Food Security at Edinburgh?
- This MSc has been running for around 10 years and the programme's relevance is increasing yearly.
- Our interdisciplinary programme will provide you with knowledge and problem-solving skills on the broad topic of food security.
- You will gain an advanced understanding of the technical, agronomic, environmental, economic and socio-political factors influencing food security.
- Our programme is suitable for students who want to better understand how to analyse food security at local and global levels and are interested in developing skills to work towards reducing food insecurity and making the food system more sustainable.
- Courses are delivered by lecturers who are active researchers and experts in food security-related fields (for example, the sciences of crop and animal production, food supply chains, and food policy.)
- Our programme gives you the scope to fulfill the growing demand for qualified experts contributing to the policy and development on food production, food consumption and the supply chain.
Online Information Session
Watch the recording of our online Information Session (25th Feb), hosted by Programme Director Dr Montse Costa Font.
Back to the applicant website
Pre-arrival reading list
Your courses
This MSc programme comprises:
- 4 compulsory and 2 option courses
- dissertation
Our compulsory courses cover the main approaches used to analyse food security, agricultural aspects and techniques relevant to food security, the interaction between food systems and food security, and quantitative methods to analyse food security data.
You will also benefit from the knowledge and expertise of selected guest speakers from non-academic organisations (for example, the food industry, government and non-governmental organisations).
You can find out more about compulsory and optional courses on the Degree Programme Tables (DPTs). Please note that the information on the current DPTs is for academic year 2024-25 and is subject to change in future years. The DPTs for academic year 2025-26 will be published in April 2025.
Read more about selecting optional courses on the applicant website.
Your dissertation
The dissertation is an opportunity to explore a topic of your choice in relation to the programme and to demonstrate your knowledge to potential employers. Previous topics include:
- How Consumer in the UK Trade Off Carbon Labels and Taste-Related Labels
- Household Food Waste and Shock An Analysis of Scottish Household Food Waste During Covid-19
- Farmers as Facilitators of Local Transformation: Drivers and Barriers Among Farmers Championing Climate Change in Scotland
- Sustainability on the menu? The barriers and opportunities for serving pulses in Scottish schools
- Conventional Cattle’s Devastating Environmental Impacts in the Colombian Amazon, the Challenges of Mainstreaming Silvopastoral Systems, and Determinants of Practice Adoption.
- Improving poultry and aquaculture production through investments in smallholder farmers’ participation in formal food market: Empirical evidence from Malawi
Where will you be taught?
The majority of teaching on the MSc Food Security programme will take place at the King's Buildings campus. You may also have access to SRUC's lab facilities through elective courses or if your dissertation involves lab work. As a student of this MSc, you will also have access to the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute (ECCI) Masters Hub.
Scotland's Rural College (SRUC)
This MSc is delivered in collaboration with Scotland's Rural College (SRUC).
You will benefit from being a fully enrolled student at the University of Edinburgh, as well as access to all of the complementary staff, expertise, and resources at SRUC.
Upon successful completion of your MSc, you will be awarded your degree by the University of Edinburgh.
Field trips/excursions
The MSc Food Security aims to develop your knowledge and skills with real-world food security challenges through a field trip experience. Our field trip will enable you to see how the knowledge, techniques and investigative skills learned during the earlier part of the programme are applied in practice.
Previous field trips included visits to international organisations, government institutions, local universities, and key stakeholders involved in the food supply chain within the relevant country.
The countries previously visited have been Malaysia, Kenya, Italy, and Peru.
You can read more about the 2023 field trip to Peru below:
You may also take part in a day trip during induction week to give you a chance to get to know your fellow students and staff.
Our compulsory field trips or field courses are free, including travel and accommodation.
Scholarships
School of GeoSciences scholarships
Scholarships and student funding
You can find funding opportunities, tuition fees and costs of living for prospective UK and international postgraduate students on the University website.
You are also encouraged to undertake your own research into the range of potential scholarships and other funding outside the University for which you may be eligible.
Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) alumni discount
The SRUC alumni discount aims to encourage SRUC graduates to take up opportunities to study taught masters (MSc). SRUC may provide a financial contribution towards tuition fees for eligible applicants for SRUC programmes delivered in conjunction with the University of Edinburgh.
Future of your subject
Population growth, development, climate change, technology, migration, conflicts, recently Covid-19 and many other elements are generating high pressure on the food system.
There is an urgent need to understand how food production and consumption are changing and what their effects are.
Furthermore, we must explore the possibilities to reach a more sustainable food system for all.
Food security - a critical issue worldwide
Careers
This MSc gives you the scope to fulfil the growing demand for qualified experts contributing to the policy and development on food production, food consumption and the supply chain.
We are proud of our graduates, and many have gone on to jobs in government, NGOs, industry and academia around the world.
Some examples include:
- Kantar
- USAID
- Soil Association
- The Trade Council of Denmark in Indonesia and Malaysia
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
- World Business Council for Sustainable Development
- NIRAS
- AECOM
- UPSIDE Foods
You can find a comprehensive list on the degree finder under 'Career opportunities'
Alumni
We have a thriving global network of alumni living and working around the world. As well as individual MSc programme networks, the School of GeoSciences has a large alumni network, which you can join after graduation. You'll have the opportunity to engage with and learn from like minded individuals who can offer advice about shaping your career path.
You can read our alumni profiles to find out more about our graduates experiences throughout their studies and beyond on our website.
If you prefer to watch a video, you can watch our alumni interviews on YouTube.
You can also read alumni profiles on the SRUC website.
Your programme directors and cohort lead.
Find out more about your programme directors and cohort lead.
Dr. Montse Costa Font
The programme director and cohort lead for MSc Food Security is Montse Costa Font. Montse is an applied economist and her research interests are at the intersection of food economics, behavioural science and environmental policy. Currently, she is working on several projects examining food supply organisation, market structure analysis, and new product development. She is also working on the environmental effects of food production, sensory issues on consumers' purchases and health effects of food choices.
Montse's background is in Agricultural Economics and Environmental Policy and she has been teaching and researching the food supply chain field for around 15 years. Montse will coordinate your first core course, "Frameworks to assess Food Security", and she is fascinated to supervise students looking at various aspects of the food supply chains worldwide. In her free time, she loves cooking and discovering healthy and sustainable food recipes. She also loves to walk around the pretty Scottish landscapes.
Dr. Faical Akaichi
The deputy programme director for the programme is Faical Akaichi. Faical is an applied economist with a specialisation in behavioural economics, food marketing and econometrics.
His research aims to further the understanding of individuals’ behaviour and its determining factors and how policy can best make use of this understanding to promote more sustainable and healthier food production and consumption.
Whereas some of this work encompasses qualitative methods, the main thrust has been towards quantitative methods.
Faical is also a lecturer and a frequent dissertation supervisor for the programme. In his spare time, Faical is a keen runner and hiker.
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