Food aid is one of the oldest forms of foreign aid and one of the most controversial. Food aid has been credited with saving millions of lives and improving the lives of many more, but it was also a serious obstacle in the Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations. Nothing seems more obvious than the need to give food to hungry people, and yet this apparently benevolent response is far more complicated than it seems. Does food aid do more harm than good? This issue of The State of Food and Agriculture seeks to understand the challenges and opportunities associated with food aid, particularly in crisis situations, and the ways in which it can – and cannot – support sustainable improvements in food security.