Biotechnology and FAO

FAO recognizes that when appropriately integrated with other technologies for the production of food, agricultural products and services, biotechnology can be of significant assistance in meeting the needs of an expanding and increasingly urbanized population.

• Providing them with legal and technical advice. For example, FAO has assisted Bangladesh, Paraguay and Sri Lanka to develop their national biotechnology policies and strategies.
• Assisting them to develop their capacities in agricultural biotechnologies and related issues through technical co-operation and training. This has been done in several countries, including Bolivia, Kenya, Malaysia, Uganda and Swaziland.
• Providing them with access to high-quality, updated, balanced, science-based information. This is done using the Internet, e-mail conferences and newsletters as well as providing them with access to articles, books, glossaries, proceedings and studies published by FAO concerning biotechnologies in food and agriculture.
• Offering them a neutral forum to discuss policy and technical issues related to biotechnology. For example, in 2010, FAO organized the international technical conference on Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10) (ABDC-10) in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Also, FAO hosts the Secretariats of a number of intergovernmental bodies and treaties that deal with some biotechnology-related issues, including the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA), the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the Joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission.