News archive 2016

With little time to lose to secure a winter harvest in Hurricane-struck Haiti, FAO has begun emergency distributions of seeds and tools to help disaster-affected families produce food and restore livelihoods lost in the country’s biggest humanitarian crisis since the 2010 earthquake.

Progress toward defeating hunger in the world’s most populous region has slowed and countries of Asia-Pacific must redouble their efforts if the Sustainable Development Goal of zero hunger is to be met by 2030, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization warned today.

In an effort to combat the impacts of environmental degradation and promote sustainable agriculture in the face of climate change, FAO this week presented a set of Voluntary guidelines for agro-environmental policies meant to support policy makers in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Support for Colombia is based on the FAO-driven Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure , which have been developed to assist governments in safeguarding people's rights to property or access to land, forests and fisheries.

The agricultural traditions and food culture of the Mediterranean region have long been looked to as an example of a healthy approach to eating, underpinned by vibrant rural economies. But new challenges are now raising questions about their future, according to a new book by FAO and the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies.

Soils and pulses are crucial tools to feed the growing population and combat climate change, especially when deployed together, according to a new report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization released on World Soil Day.

FAO intends to create a new Department for Climate, Land and Water, a new Office of Chief Statistician and also appoint a new Deputy Director-General who will oversee the UN agency's work related to technical cooperation, resource mobilization, partnerships and South-South cooperation.

“Biodiversity is essential for food security and nutrition,” FAO Deputy Director Genera Maria Helena Semedo said at the opening High-Level Segment of the 13th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

A high-level international symposium on nutrition ended here today with a resounding reminder of the importance of promoting healthy diets and ensuring adequate nutrition for everyone in order to eradicate hunger and malnutrition by 2030 – a goal set by the UN Member nations last year.

Queen Letizia of Spain, FAO’s Special Ambassador for Nutrition, joined more than 600 experts, international civil servants, lawmakers, academics and members of civil-society and private-sector groups in attending the International Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition.