Those responsible for producing, processing and overseeing the food we eat must take more collaborative and decisive action if the Asia-Pacific region is to achieve the zero hunger target of the Sustainable Development Goals by the 2030 deadline, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and partners warned on the close of a multi-UN agency symposium on diets and nutrition.

The two-day “Asia Pacific Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition,” organized by FAO in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), UNICEF and the World Bank, brought together more than 250 experts and policy-makers from across the region to take stock, share best practices and propose policies and programmes about how adjustments to food systems can bring about better nutrition for all, especially the most vulnerable.

Opening the event, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, who is the UN FAO Special Ambassador for Zero Hunger in Asia and the Pacific, stated that: “While we fight hunger and malnutrition, including micronutrient deficiencies, we must also be mindful of the growing rate of obesity in Asia and the Pacific. Economic development has, in some cases, led to an increase in unhealthy diets high in salt, free sugars and fats. This coupled with inadequate physical activity has resulted in a doubling of the growth-rate of overweight people in just two decades.”

The symposium further discussed this Asia-Pacific “double burden” of malnutrition where undernutrition and obesity coexist. Panelists agreed it was critical that people have access to, and utilize, healthy, safe and sustainable food, ensuring good nutrition, along with better care and feeding practices, water and sanitation, education and social protection. 

During the inaugural session, FAO’s Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative launched a new regional publication, the 2017 Asia and the Pacific State of Food Security and Nutrition report. It warned that in some parts of the region the fight against hunger had slowed and there were even signs that undernutrition was on the rise again. There were positive signs as well though, with the intake of fruits and vegetables on the increase and a growing interest among member countries to find new ways to curb food loss and food waste and replicate successful existing ones.

The symposium brought together players from the entire spectrum of people who influence what we eat, covering a broad range of topics from food fortification to the promotion of indigenous food, from agricultural policies to how to help consumers make healthier choices.

The Asia Pacific Symposium is one of five regional follow-up events stemming from the FAO and WHO International Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition held in Rome in December 2016. The International Symposium is part of the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016-2025, and focuses on the Sustainable Development Goal 2 – Zero Hunger.