News archive 2013

The three heads of the Rome-based United Nations agencies today called for food security and nutrition to be placed at the centre of the international agenda for African development. Special attention should be given to supporting smallholder farmers to improve global food security and empowering rural women, addressing gender inequalities and enabling them to transform their own lives and the lives of their families and communities.

Surges in jellyfish populations may be one reason for a drop in fish stocks observed in the Mediterranean and Black Sea, according to a new report published by FAO. Overfishing, which removes top predators from the sea, is one of the factors behind jellyfish "blooms", or suddenly increased numbers. A "vicious circle" can then follow.

Belgium has announced its full support of the renewed FAO Strategic Framework through direct funding to the FAO budget. Belgium will donate €9.2 million over the three-year period 2013-2015 towards FAO programmes that focus on hunger eradication and malnutrition, sustainable production and also poverty eradication in rural areas as well as better governance for food and agriculture in recipient countries, FAO has announced.

Save and Grow, an environmentally-friendly farming model promoted by FAO, can sustainably increase cassava yields by up to 400 percent and help turn this staple from a poor people's food into a 21st Century crop. A newly-published field guide details Save and Grow's applications to cassava smallholder production.

Indonesia and FAO will strengthen cooperation in the field of marine affairs, fisheries and aquaculture under an agreement signed in Jakarta during an official visit by FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva. The three-year Memorandum of Agreement sets up a framework for future joint activities in those sectors.

FAO has launched a $9 million project on information for decision making for food and nutrition security. This initiative will assist the Government of South Sudan to achieve its goal of ensuring food security for all.

Governments, civil society and the private sector should ensure and strengthen the contributions of forests, trees and agroforestry systems to food security and nutrition, said participants in the first-ever International Conference on Forests for Food Security and Nutrition (13-15 May), organized by FAO.

FAO and the international Slow Food organization agreed today to develop joint actions to improve the livelihoods of smallholders and others working in rural areas. Under a three-year Memorandum of Agreement signed here the two organizations will join forces to promote more inclusive food and agriculture systems at local, national and international levels.

Forests, trees on farms and agroforestry are critical in the fight against hunger and should be better integrated into food security and land use policies, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said today at the International Conference on Forests for Food Security and Nutrition in Rome (13-15 May).

The three conventions that govern chemicals and hazardous waste safety at the global level concluded their first ever jointly held meetings of the parties late Friday night in Geneva. The historic meeting, attended by nearly two thousand participants from 170 countries, as well as 80 Ministers, adopted 50 separate decisions aimed at strengthening protection against hazardous chemicals and waste.