Dear colleagues,
Please find below my contribution to the draft paper:
Overall comments:
The paper is quite comprehensive however it still appears as a puzzle of different contributions from different authors, and it is still lacking a real synthetic, logical and comprehensive approach of Food systems and nutrition. As an example, the section on food processing and packaging p 81 is dealing only with food fortification as it seems that the writer of this section is a food fortification specialist. But I hope it is not a decision of the HLPE to say that food processing is only food fortification….
Actually, this is another comment I have that private sector is not well described and presented in all its complexity in the paper. Even if in the introduction and in the framework, private sector is supposed to be the main component of the food system as they are the value actors (represented by the four arrows on the left in the framework p 14), in the text private sector does not receive the same attention and representation (with case studies for example) than other actors such as governments or research. One concrete example, is p 77-line 16 saying that: “The private sector also has a role to play in terms in intervening across the value chain. “ This sentence is under-considering the role of private sector, as , from my point of view, the private sector is the MAJOR PLAYER that intervene in the food value chains, as almost all food value chains actors are private sector, from farmers, to traders, processors, retailers, etc… One of my main suggestion would be to give much more importance to private sector initiatives and experiences in section 4 dealing with best practices.
It should also emphasize that private sector is not only big multinationals, but is mainly represented by small and medium enterprises, farmers and other stakeholders. For example, 80 to 90% of food processors enterprises in developed countries are SMEs and this number is much higher in developing countries if considering the informal sector and all kind of micro and small enterprises in the food sector, most of the time run by women entrepreneurs. It is true that data are difficult to find in particular in developing countries about the importance of SMEs because of informal sector, however data are available in developed countries and could be highlighted anyway.
This low representation of private sector links to very few policy recommendations related with economic development, economic incentives, enabling environment for enterprise and agroindustries development (mainly for SMEs) which from my point of view would be very important for developing and supporting better food systems for healthy diets. The example from GAIN initiative related with Markets Places and innovations (Box 37, p 89) could be a good start to showcase this role of private sector: from my point of view, it should be better placed in the section of food processing. Value chains approaches are also missing, in particular nutrition sensitive ones such as developed by IFPRI, IFAD and others (see paper attached ).
Specific comments:
Another issue is that the paper failed to show the link between sustainability of food systems and sustainability of diets which is linked with healthy diets. Topics such as biodiversity, sustainable food production, sustainable food value chains, use of voluntary standards such as organic production, and other private schemes should be highlighted as well as the link with better nutrition and healthy diets.
In the section 4.2.2 related with changes in food systems, too much emphasis is given to modernization with high-tech and too little to supporting existing and healthy traditional and local food systems with alternative systems that already exists such as organic agriculture, innovative markets for sustainable agriculture, short circuits marketing systems, Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS), Community Based Agriculture (CSA), quality linked to geographical origin and geographical indications. Please see below some publications related with these systems in particular from CFS and FAO-INRA.
Please find below some useful publications where examples and case studies could be taken:
Publications on Geographical indications and Quality linked to Origin:
http://www.fao.org/in-action/quality-and-origin-program/en/
http://www.fao.org/in-action/quality-and-origin-program/tools/linking-people-places-products/en/
Publications on institutional procurement and PAA Africa:
http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/ivc/institutional-procurement/en/
Publications on innovative markets and sustainability:
http://www.fao.org/cfs/hlfsmall/en/
http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5907e.pdf
http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5398e.pdf
Project on Biodiversity for Nutrition:
Publication on PPP (for section p 105-line 15)
http://www.fao.org/publications/card/en/c/20e3ff08-df6f-4e48-abd3-037eccdde9df/
Publications on sustainable food value chains:
http://www.fao.org/sustainable-food-value-chains/home/en/
http://www.fao.org/sustainable-food-value-chains/what-is-it/en/
http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/ags-division/publications/publication/en/c/342479/
http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/ags-division/publications/publication/en/c/181167/
Best regards,
Florence Tartanac
Senior officer
Market Linkages and Value Chains Group
Nutrition and Food Systems Division (ESN)
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Rome, Italy
www.fao.org
Florence Tartanac