FAO.org

Significant changes in land or crop use to be avoidedBangkok ¬ Improvements in agricultural productivity and responsible management of natural resources in support of the biofuel sector will unlock additional benefits for farmers, industry and the environment, an FAO statement said today.Findings emerging from the FAO Bioenergy and Food Security (BEFS) Project indicate that Thailand has the means to realize the Government’s plan for the development of the biofuels industry...

The interplay between land availability, bioenergy production potential, rural development and food security, and the assessment of different bioenergy pathways present crucial areas for policy considerations, in particular for balancing trade-offs associated with bioenergy development.A research team composed of experts from FAO, the Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment – King Monkuts University of Technology Thonburi, the Office of Agricultural Economics, the Land Development Department, the Rural and Social...

Over 100 000 people so far have signed on to an international campaign to shine light on the scourge of chronic hunger / Beijing/Bangkok – Award-winning Chinese actress and FAO Goodwill Ambassador Gong Li is mad as hell, even though her new film Shanghai, co-starring John Cusak, promises to be a summer blockbuster.The star of acclaimed movie hits such as Raise the Red Lantern and Farewell My Concubine is taking...

Thimphu - While the area of forests in the Asia-Pacific region increases, levels of biodiversity are falling as large areas of primary forests continue to be lost according to FAO’s latest assessments.Forest cover in the Asia-Pacific region has risen by 14 million hectares since 2000. China, in particular, has shown remarkable progress, increasing its forest area by almost 30 million hectares in the past decade. Viet Nam, India and the...

Barguna - With support from FAO, a rural radio station for and by remote villagers will run alongside comprehensive rehabilitation support donated by the World Bank and the European Union for farmers and fishers regularly stalked by storms."People in the south need more support to rebuild their livelihood after the devastation caused by cyclones Sidr and Aila. Support in crop, fisheries and livestock sectors will be supplemented by broadcasting vital...

Participants from 12 Asian countries have agreed to move forward on concrete measures to reduce barriers to trade of organic products between them and win a growing share of global trade. The agreement was reached at a workshop held in Shanghai from 29 to 31 May under the auspices of the Global Organic Market Access (GOMA) project run jointly by FAO, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) and...

Bangkok – Asia needs to wake up to the enormous challenge to feeding its population of 5 billion people by 2050. Gross annual investments of US$209 billion are required for primary agriculture and downstream services in the developing countries of the world for future food security.Following the multiple crises of fuel, food and finance over the last 4 years, domestic food prices have increased dramatically and are at present still...

Phnom Penh – Under the FAO European Union Food Facility Project, the Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) HE Chan Sarun, yesterday distributed quality rice seed and fertilizer to 1 395 poor farm households in Chikreang Commune, Siem Reap province.Across Cambodia, rice seed and fertilizer are distributed to poorer rural families in 50 communes and 280 villages in nine provinces, in order to assist these families increase their...

Kuala Lumpur/Bangkok – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and FAO today launched a campaign to raise awareness about the increasing problem of world hunger affecting over 1 billion people globally, of which 642 million live in the Asia-Pacific region. The cooperation agreement was signed today in Kuala Lumpur by AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam and FAO’s Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific Region, Hiroyuki Konuma.The signing...

World rice prices dropped during 2010Bangkok - FAO’s estimate of global rice paddy production in 2009 now stands at 680 million tones, 1 percent below the 2008 outstanding harvest, with much of the reduction being on account of Asia, where crops were impaired by erratic monsoon rains and the resurgence of El Niño conditions. Sluggish world import demand negatively affected all the rice market segments and resulted in sharp declines...