UN HABITAT III to address urban – rural linkages that prevent and reduce food waste and food loss
Habitat III is the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development to take place in Quito, Ecuador, from 17 – 20 October 2016. The Conference will focus on implementing the “New Urban Agenda”, building on the Habitat Agenda of Istanbul in 1996.
FAO Food for Cities collaborates with the Global Initiative on Food Loss and Waste Reduction (SAVE FOOD) for the UN HABITAT III process. Food waste prevention and reduction is reflected in the Issue paper on Urban – rural linkages that is part of the Spatial Development workarea.
Food waste is an issue of concern not only for the industrialized countries but also for developing countries and countries in transition as a result of such trends as rapid urbanization and population growth. Globally, an estimated one-third of total food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted across the supply chains each year. Consumer level waste accounts for 22% and distribution waste accounts for 12% of these losses (FAO, 2011) and it is an increasing issue in peri-urban and urban areas.
The Habitat III Issue paper on Urban – rural linkages is highlighting the following key areas of intervention: (i) evidence-based policies and strategies as well as action prioritization and coordination by public, private, and civil society; (ii) multi-stakeholder dialogue to enable recovery and redistribution for human consumption of safe and nutritious food and knowledge transfer; (iii) resource mobilization and infrastructure provisions through public–private partnerships; (iv) implementation capacity to address an increasing social demand; (v) tools for monitoring and evaluation that provide guidance also on food safety and quality (including human nutrition) and that capture further data on the four dimensions (availability, access, utilization and stability) of food and nutrition security.
An online consultation is open on the six thematic areas and issue papers from 6 to 31 July 2015.
The thematic areas are:
- Social Cohesion and Equity
- Urban Frameworks
- Spatial Development
- Urban Economy
- Urban Ecology and Environment
- Urban Housing and Basic Services