Injustices are prevalent in food systems, where the accumulation of vast wealth is possible for a few, yet one in ten people remain hungry. This study combines aquatic food production, distribution, and consumption data with national policy documents for 194 countries to explore whether barriers to participation explain unequal benefit distributions. Using Bayesian models, economic and political barriers are associated with lower wealth-based benefits, while social barriers are linked to lower welfare-based benefits. Policy analyses reveal a frequent failure to address political and gender-based barriers; however, policies linked to more just outcomes center human rights, inclusive decision-making, and addressing injustice drivers.

Christina C. Hicks, Jessica A. Gephart, J. Zachary Koehn, Shinnosuke Nakayama, Hanna J. Payne, Edward H. Allison, Dyhia Belhbib, Ling Cao, Philippa J. Cohen, Jessica Fanzo, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Stefan Gelcich, Christopher D. Golden, Kelvin D. Gorospe, Moenieba Isaacs, Caitlin D. Kuempel, Kai N. Lee, M. Aaron MacNeil, Eva Maire, Jemimah Njuki, Nitya Rao, U. Rashid Sumaila, Elizabeth R. Selig, Shakuntala H. Thilsted, Colette C. C. Wabnitz, Rosamond L. Naylor