Private Sector and Businesses

  • Private sector entities should commit to applying measures to prevent and reduce losses and waste of fruits and vegetables within their operations, as well as in those of other operators along the supply chain. Equipment manufacturers and service providers should develop improved technologies, processes and market information that support the activities and livelihoods of small-scale fruit and vegetable producers (particularly women and local producers) and facilitate the creation of more efficient and equitable value chains.
  • Private sector entities should commit to adopting innovations that facilitate the formation of collaborative inter-firm relationships. These include relationships between firms at different levels of the value chain, known as vertical relationships, and among firms at the same level of the value chain, known as horizontal relationships. Examples of effective cooperation include market information-sharing and inter-firm communication, both of which contribute to reduced transaction costs, risk-offsetting opportunities, and effective group governance that promotes micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises that enhance competitiveness along the fruit and vegetable value chain.
  • Countries, the private sector, civil society organizations (CSOs), international organizations and academic and research institutions should invest in research and development (R&D) aimed at increasing options and innovations to improve fruit and vegetable production at all stages along the value chain. Examples of where R&D could focus include harvest handling for improved efficiency and preservation mechanisms; loss and waste prevention by taking into consideration the special needs of vulnerable populations; and building on traditional knowledge.

Civil Society Organizations (CSOs)

  • Civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should form networks and action groups to work in an articulated way to promote the availability, accessibility and affordability of fruits and vegetables. In addition, they should advocate and support health-promoting programmes and health education campaigns. Examples of these include promoting the introduction of fruits and vegetables as part of complementary foods around six months of age for infant and young childcare practices, and advocating food and nutrition education in nursery and primary schools to improve food literacy.
  • Civil society and NGOs should organize campaigns and events aimed at empowering citizens to take a more active role in legislative and political processes and advocate for the prioritization of healthy diets to prevent and treat malnutrition and non-communicable diseases (NCDs). 
  • CSOs and other actors should support consumer behaviour change through awareness raising and training on the importance of – and avenues for – reducing fruit and vegetable waste.

Farmers and Cooperatives

  • Farmers and cooperatives should work together and promote coordination within supply chains to help increase market competitiveness and reduce loss and waste in fruits and vegetables.
  • Farmers and cooperatives should prioritize food safety within their operations and across fruit and vegetable supply chains and take actions to ensure that the fruits and vegetables reaching consumers are safe. 
  • Farmers, especially smallholders and family farmers, should be given increased access to short chains or circuits in order to increase their profitability while implementing strategies for reducing production costs for fruits and vegetables. They should also seek opportunities in diversification and move towards more sustainable production systems, for example through crop rotation and diversity and use of fewer chemical inputs. Cooperatives can support the farmers’ transition by providing training and better connecting them to markets.

Governments

  • Governments should implement consistent public policies that ensure healthy food systems in order to promote the availability, accessibility and affordability of fruits and vegetables. International trade plays a key role in the provision of fruits and vegetables worldwide. Governments should promote international trade as well as local production to provide healthy and safe fruits and vegetables to their population and ensure that they are affordable by adopting trade policies, regulations and standards that are consistent with multilateral trade agreement rules and recommendations.
  • Countries should have a legal framework to adopt nutrition-sensitive practices along the food supply value chain. This framework should focus on a range of diverse, affordable, nutritious, culturally appropriate and safe fruits and vegetables in adequate quantities to sustainably meet the dietary requirements of populations. This will have a positive effect on our health, biodiversity conservation and use environmental sustainability and reduce costs of public health care.
  • Governments should take the necessary steps to ensure that the food supply chain and logistical links are robust so that supplies of fruits and vegetables are available at all times, especially to the most vulnerable populations. For example, this could be done by promoting the consumption of fruits and vegetables through school nutrition programmes or other programmes targeted at vulnerable people, or through promoting public purchases of local products.
  • Countries and governments have the role of coordinating different agencies to promote and carry out the objectives of the IYFV, such as raising awareness about the benefits of consuming fruits and vegetables for health and nutrition; promoting healthy diets through increased consumption of fruits and vegetables; promoting the sustainable production of fruits and vegetables with special emphasis on family farming and small farmers; and reducing losses and waste in supply chains from production to consumption.

General Public

  • Consumers should store and handle fruits and vegetables appropriately in order to preserve their quality, thereby helping to prevent deterioration and food waste. Preventing waste also includes buying imperfect looking fruit and vegetables, which are perfectly edible and nutritious.
  • All consumers, including children, should be encouraged to increase the amount of fruits and vegetables in their diets. This can be done through higher fruit and vegetable offerings in public settings such as schools, workplaces, hospitals and care centres.  In order to achieve desired behavioural changes, efforts need to be supported by the media, public awareness campaigns, nutritional education programmes in schools, community interventions and increased information at points of sale.  Health promotion that fosters healthy eating practices from infancy through incorporating fruit and vegetable consumption can have a major impact on health and well-being during childhood and later stages in life.
  • As a society, we need to rediscover the importance of fresh produce and traditional knowledge. Gastronomy, culinary skills and local biodiversity benefit our health as well as our environment. 
  • Influencers and chefs should promote the utilization of fruits and vegetables – particularly indigenous varieties – in their recipes and menus and teach the public new ways of preparing and conserving them.

Academia

  • Researchers and academic institutions need to be advocates for sustainable production practices. They should support efforts to increase efficiency and reduce losses and waste in the supply chain of fruits of vegetables, as well as at the consumer level, by investing in research and development targeted at finding effective solutions. They should also work alongside policymakers to encourage and implement such solutions.
  • Academic researchers should promote agricultural and food policies that encourage a change from monoculture practices to an approach that fosters biodiversity in the production of fruits and vegetables to mitigate land degradation and pest and disease outbreaks.