FAO Director-General, Qu Dongyu, will address the 31st international round-table discussion on the contribution of the Montreal Protocol to the development of sustainable cold chains and the reduction of food loss to be hosted by FAO at its headquarters in Rome on 7 November.

Around one third of all the food produced for consumption around the world is either lost or wasted and food loss mainly occurs in developing countries where 821 million people still suffer from chronic malnutrition.

The Montreal Protocol and its Kigali Amendment have raised awareness about the need to develop sustainable solutions in the refrigeration and air-conditioning sector to address the demand for air-conditioning systems for human comfort and cold chains for the preservation of food and vaccines.

Ministers and experts at the roundtable will discuss how to address food loss by putting in place sustainable cold chains that include pre-cooling, refrigerated storage and refrigerated transport. Members of the panel are expected to share knowledge on best practices, research and development and financial support while addressing the importance of pursuing national action and international cooperation to reduce food loss in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.