People gather in front of the large statues of former North Korean leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il at Mansudae Hill, Pyongyang, Feb. 6. A recent report from the United Nations shows that many North Korean children suffer from food shortages. Yonhap

More than four out of 10 North Koreans are facing food insecurity with a third of its children unable to get the minimum daily intake of food, a United Nations report showed Wednesday, indicating severe food shortages aggravated by years of natural disasters.

According to the report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), about 10.9 million people in North Korea are deemed "food insecure," which accounts for some 43 percent of the North's total population.

In particular, one out of three children aged 6-23 months do not receive "the minimum acceptable diet" while one out five are facing "chronic malnutrition."

The severe food insecurity was attributed to natural disasters in recent years, which have wrought havoc on the country's farming sector.

"The country is critically dependent on agriculture for its food security, which has been severely affected over the past six years by natural disasters, such as floods and drought, which erode farmers' coping capacities," the report said. "Even relatively small-scale events can have serious impacts on food production."