Publications
Publication series
Latest publications
Literature review
Technical report, 2025
Representative data collection is fundamental to social science research and evidence-based policy development, yet standard survey methodologies struggle to adequately capture hard-to-reach (HTR) populations essential to understanding social inequality and economic vulnerability. This literature review...
Available in:English
Addressing land degradation across landholding scales
Corporate publications, 2025
The 2025 edition of The State of Food and Agriculture explores the theme “Addressing land degradation across landholding scales”. It examines the implications of human-induced land degradation for agricultural production, producers of all scales and...
Available in:English
Addressing land degradation across landholding scales
Corporate publications, 2025
The In Brief version of the FAO flagship publication "The State of Food and Agriculture 2025" contains the key messages and main points from the publication and is aimed at the media, policymakers and more...
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2025
Working paper, 2025
Understanding how much food is produced by farms of different sizes is central to shaping inclusive, sustainable and resilient agrifood systems. While smallholders are widely recognized as critical for local food security, especially in low-...
Available in:English
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2025
Working paper, 2025
Over the last decade, increasing efforts have been made to estimate the number of farms and the global distribution of farmland, providing context for the ongoing discourse on the future of farms, farm sizes, food...
Available in:English
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2025
Working paper, 2025
Research on land-related agri-environmental policies and their impact on agriculture and the environment usually focuses on individual policies in specific national and regional contexts. This study fills this gap by providing a global perspective on...
Available in:English
Exploring income diversification among agricultural households in developing economies
Working paper, 2025
Smallholder farmers remain central to rural economies across developing countries, yet small landholdings and limited non-farm opportunities constrain their ability to achieve a living income. Using harmonized household survey data from 37 countries and panel...
Available in:English
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2025
Working paper, 2025
There is growing empirical evidence that land degradation (e.g. loss of soil organic carbon, soil drying, increased soil erosion) is associated with increased crop yield gaps. Here, we examine how much this happens where socio-economically...
Available in:English
Policy brief, 2025
The State of Food and Agriculture 2025 presents the most comprehensive global assessment to date of who produces the world’s food. Covering 77 countries and 120 crops, the report finds that while farms larger than...
Available in:English
Policy brief, 2025
Land degradation poses a significant threat to global food security, affecting approximately 1.7 billion people by limiting agricultural yields. This policy brief explores the multifaceted nature of land degradation, defined as the long-term decline in...
Available in:English