News

16 Oct 2004 -- “Biodiversity for Food Security”, the theme of this year’s World Food Day, reflects our planet’s richness and the key to ending hunger that this great diversity represents.However, the world’s biodiversity is under threat and this could severely compromise global food security. FAO estimates that about three-quarters of the genetic diversity of agricultural crops have been lost over the last century. As a consequence, the food supply becomes more vulnerable, there [more...]

27 Sep 2004 -- Virus will not be eradicated in the near future, FAO/OIE say – new FAO guidelines published, supported by OIEBangkok ‑ The avian influenza epidemic in Asia is a “crisis of global importance” and will continue to demand the attention of the international community for some time to come, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) said in a joint statement today. Recent [more...]

Afghanistan, 16 Sep 2004 -- Rome – Afghanistan’s agriculture has suffered widespread crop failure caused by below average rains as well as plant and animal diseases, according to a joint report issued today by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP). More than six million Afghans will need food and non-food assistance in the coming year. Drought conditions are particularly acute in the west, southwest and south of the [more...]

14 Sep 2004 -- Are better fishing practices responsible for decrease, or are there just fewer fish to waste?Rome -- New FAO analysis of global data for the last decade shows that on average, some 7.3 million tonnes of fish are being thrown back to sea unused each year -- a decrease of about 12 million tonnes from FAO's previous estimate.In 1996 the UN agency estimated that average annual global fish discards were around [more...]

Thailand, 09 Sep 2004 -- Bangkok – Part of a far-reaching strategy to address poverty and food security in Thailand, cooperation with BAAC focuses on building rural self-help groups, an FAO statement said today.Thai farmers have to respond to emerging challenges posed by the globalized market and the impact of free trade agreements in terms of productivity, and quality and food safety standards of their produce. They need to invest in new production technologies and [more...]

the Lao People's Democratic Republic, 31 Aug 2004 -- Vientiane – Rural women in Asia are critical human capital for achieving food security and poverty reduction in the region, an FAO statement said today. Opening a meeting on the advancement of rural women in the Beijing+10 era, Leena Kirjavainen, FAO representative in Laos, stressed that “family and public investments in education and technical training for girls and women remain minimal and largely hamper their economic and social participation in [more...]

24 Aug 2004 -- Bangkok, 24 to 26 August 2004Executive SummaryRapid progress of analytical methods resulted in large improvements in detectioncapabilities of low residue levels of veterinary drugs, and exposed gaps in current national and international regulatory systems leading particularly to major impacts on international trade. Decisive and innovative action – both realistic and flexible – is needed to address these gaps. In relation to analytical methodology, possible measures for addressing these concerns include [more...]

12 Aug 2004 -- Two workshops on important information management issues for agriculture and rural development were sponsored by FAO at the AFITA/WCCA 2004 conference in Bangkok, Thailand.The first workshop focused on "Bridging the rural digital divide". Speakers and participants recognized that the information revolution has bypassed nearly one billion people, the rural poor, who constitute 75 percent of the people in the world who live on less than one dollar a day. The [more...]

06 Aug 2004 -- During its 28th session held in Chiang Mai from 3 to 5 August 2004 the members of the Asia-Pacific Fishery Commission (APFIC) unanimously decided that APFIC will take on a new role to act as a regional consultative forum to promote the sustainable development of fisheries and aquaculture in the region. It will provide a framework for its members to identify and discuss common issues in the region, promote partnerships [more...]

06 Aug 2004 -- DECLINE IN VALUABLE FISH SPECIES, BETTER MANAGEMENT REQUIRED: FAO REPORTChiang Mai - The management of fishery resources in Asia-Pacific needs to be improved, as overfishing is increasing and the abundance of more valuable species has declined, according to an FAO report presented to the Asia-Pacific Fishery Commission during a meeting this week in Chiang Mai, Thailand.FAO's report affirmed that fisheries and aquaculture are of vital importance for food security and [more...]