2004 World Food Day/TeleFood theme

Each year on 16 October, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations celebrates World Food Day in commemoration of its founding on that day in 1945. The World Food Day theme and Tele-Food campaign for 2004, “Biodiversity for food security”, pay tribute to biodiversity’s role in ensuring that people have sustainable access to enough high-quality food to lead active and healthy lives.

Köhlers Medizinal-Pflanzen in naturgetreuen Abbildungen und kurz erläuterndem Texte

Biological diversity is fundamental to agriculture and food production. People rely on the variety of food, shelter, and goods for their livelihood. Yet, humans put increasing pressure on species and their environments. As a result, many plants and animals are at risk, as well as essential natural processes such as pollination by insects and the regeneration of soils by micro-organisms.

To feed a growing population, agriculture must provide more food. It will also be essential to increase its resilience by protecting a wide array of life forms with unique traits, such as plants that survive drought or livestock that reproduce in harsh conditions. Sustainable agricultural practices can both feed people and protect the oceans, forests, prairies and other ecosystems that harbour biological diversity.

A rich variety of cultivated plants and domesticated animals are the foundation for agricultural biodiversity. Yet people depend on just 14 mammal and bird species for 90 percent of their food supply from animals. And just four species - wheat, maize, rice and potato - provide half of our energy from plants.

Apart from the absolute number of species, it is also essential to conserve genetic diversity within each species. Modern agriculture has encouraged many farmers to adopt uniform high-yielding types of plant or animal. But when food producers abandon diversity, varieties and breeds may die out - along with specialized traits. This rapidly diminishing gene pool worries experts. Having a broad range of unique characteristics allows plants and animals to be bred to meet changing conditions, while giving scientists the raw materials they need to develop more productive and resilient crop varieties and breeds.

FAO

Rather than a single crop variety that guarantees a high yield, farmers in developing countries are more likely to need an assortment of crops that grow well in harsh climates, or animals with resistance to disease. For the poorest farmers, the diversity of life may be their best protection against starvation. Consumers also benefit from diversity through a wide choice of plants and animals. This contributes to a nutritious diet, particularly important for rural communities with limited access to markets.

FAO/J. Isaac

More than 40 percent of the land’s surface is used for agriculture, placing a large responsibility on farmers to protect biodiversity. By using appropriate techniques like no-tillage agriculture, reduced use of pesticide, organic agriculture and crop rotation, farmers maintain the fragile balance with the surrounding ecosystems. With plants, animals and their environments intact, a range of essential natural processes is preserved. Livestock, insects, fungi and micro-organisms decompose organic matter, transferring nutrients to the soil. Bees, butterflies, birds and bats pollinate fruit trees. Swamps and marshes filter out pollutants. Forests prevent flooding and reduce erosion. And natural predators keep the growth of any one species in check.

FAO

FAO estimates that about three-quarters of the genetic diversity of agricultural crops have been lost over the last century. And of 6 300 animal breeds, 1 350 are endangered or already extinct. Global efforts to conserve plants and animals in gene banks, botanical gardens and zoos are vital. But an equally important task is to maintain biodiversity on farms and in nature, where it can evolve and adapt to changing conditions or competition with other species. As custodians of the world’s biodiversity, farmers can develop and maintain local plants and trees and reproduce indigenous animals, ensuring their survival.

Köhlers Medizinal-Pflanzen in naturgetreuen Abbildungen und kurz erläuterndem Texte

Since the birth of agriculture 10 000 years ago, farmers, fishermen, pastoralists and forest dwellers have been managing genetic diversity by selecting plants and animals to meet environmental conditions and food needs. Farmers everywhere possess priceless local knowledge, including a highly-tuned sense of how to match the right variety or breed with a particular agricultural ecosystem. Conserving biodiversity for agriculture will require efforts on many fronts including measures to preserve the environment, better education, increased research and government support. FAO will continue to count on the collaboration of its partners, including other international organizations; research, trade and policy institutes; grassroots community groups, the public and consumers.

More than 840 million people remain hungry around the world and still more suffer from micronutrient deficiencies. Global efforts have so far been insufficient to reach the World Food Summit and related Millennium Development Goal of reducing the number of hungry by half by 2015. Biodiversity is a key ally in fighting malnutrition. Its protection is something we cannot afford to forget.