Foro Global sobre Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (Foro FSN)

Consultas

Fortalecimiento de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos para alcanzar la seguridad alimentaria y afianzar la nutrición en el contexto de la urbanización y la transformación rural

El Grupo de alto nivel de expertos en seguridad alimentaria y nutrición  (GANESAN) está elaborando el informe “Fortalecimiento de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos para alcanzar la seguridad alimentaria y afianzar la nutrición en el contexto de la urbanización y la transformación rural”, a petición del Comité de Seguridad Alimentaria Mundial (CSA). El informe del GANESAN se presentará en el 52.º período de sesiones del CSA en octubre de 2024.

Con esta consulta electrónica, el GANESAN desea conocer su opinión sobre el alcance propuesto para este informe y las preguntas orientativas que figuran a continuación.

ALCANCE Y JUSTIFICACIÓN

Casi el 60 % de la población mundial vive actualmente en núcleos urbanos (ONU DAES, 2018; Acharya et al., 2020). En general, se consideran motores de crecimiento y empleo, donde se produce más del 80 % del producto interno bruto (PIB) mundial. Pero también se enfrentan a enormes desafíos para garantizar el acceso de todos sus residentes a servicios esenciales, como sanidad, educación, transporte y alimentación. La población urbana está aumentando rápidamente, con un incremento particularmente acusado en África y Asia. Por ejemplo, las 15 ciudades del mundo cuya población crece de forma más rápida se encuentran en África. Además de la urbanización, se ha producido una “disociación geográfica” (Langemeyer et al., 2021) entre las ciudades y el suministro de alimentos, debido a la reorientación del uso de la tierra urbana y periurbana en búsqueda de “mayores beneficios”. En este sentido, las ciudades y municipios están perdiendo con rapidez tierras agrícolas periurbanas, que históricamente les han proporcionado alimentos frescos y saludables. Las zonas urbanas también están sufriendo un mayor número de fenómenos meteorológicos extremos que afectan a los medios de vida e ingresos de su población, mientras aumentan las desigualdades entre sus habitantes (Pelling et al., 2021). Estas tendencias implican que las zonas urbanas y periurbanas también concentran riesgos para la inseguridad alimentaria y la malnutrición, tal y como se puso de manifiesto durante la pandemia de la enfermedad por coronavirus (COVID-19) (véase, por ejemplo, Rede PENSSAN, 2021), agravada por desastres naturales y conflictos. Al mismo tiempo, las zonas urbanas y periurbanas tienen múltiples recursos y sirven como centros para la educación, la tecnología y la innovación, los servicios sanitarios y sociales y la producción, elaboración y distribución de alimentos. Todas estas funciones se podrían potenciar.

A menudo, las relaciones económicas y comerciales informales en los sistemas alimentarios en zonas urbanas empobrecidas pueden ser fundamentales para la seguridad alimentaria, pero son ignoradas por políticas y regulaciones. Los sistemas alimentarios informales están formados por una red compleja de proveedores, transportistas, vendedores ambulantes, minoristas y vendedores de alimentos en la vía pública y en los mercados, además de los agricultores, y contribuyen a que los alimentos sean más accesibles y asequibles para los consumidores urbanos. Sin embargo, estos actores del sector informal dependen principalmente de sus propios recursos y capital, y cuentan con muy poco respaldo político para reforzar sus empresas y garantizar la calidad, como apoyo para el acceso a información sobre los mercados, transporte y logística, cadenas de frío o instalaciones de reutilización de residuos (Tefft et al., 2017). De hecho, en ausencia de una planificación específica de los sistemas alimentarios, la venta y el consumo de alimentos altamente procesados está creciendo en la mayoría de los centros urbanos, mientras que el comercio local ­—que ofrece alimentos saludables y frescos a precios asequibles, y a menudo en cantidades más pequeñas— queda relegado, contribuyendo a los denominados “desiertos alimentarios”. Estas tendencias suelen afectar a la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición de forma negativa (Peyton, Moseley y Battersby, 2015; Battersby, 2017; Acharya et al., 2020).

Esta falta de coherencia en materia de políticas pone de relieve una falta general de coordinación entre las políticas y los actores relacionados con la seguridad alimentaria, la agricultura o el medio ambiente y la planificación urbana. Y se ve agravada por la escasez general de datos, análisis y evidencias empíricas a nivel urbano para fundamentar la toma de decisiones sobre políticas alimentarias urbanas y periurbanas. Es por ello que los responsables de formular las políticas tienen dificultades para planificar, priorizar, diseñar y realizar un seguimiento de las intervenciones en los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos, así como para garantizar la coherencia entre políticas y sectores. Además, los gobiernos y otros órganos —como los sistemas de alerta temprana para casos de hambruna (FEWS, por sus siglas en inglés)— no han logrado que el seguimiento de la inseguridad alimentaria en zonas urbanas esté al mismo nivel que el de zonas rurales, limitándose a indicadores muy básicos como precios de los alimentos (Moseley, 2001; Krishnamurthy, Choularton y Kareiva, 2020).

Las ciudades pueden desempeñar un papel vital en la formulación de políticas de los sistemas alimentarios para reforzar su resiliencia de varias maneras. Pueden producir alimentos cultivados localmente o de forma regenerativa cuando proceda, facilitar la producción urbana y periurbana sostenible de alimentos nutritivos, evitar el desperdicio de alimentos aumentando la inversión en bioeconomía circular (definida en términos generales como una economía basada en el uso sostenible, la reutilización y la regeneración de los recursos naturales) y construir mercados inclusivos invirtiendo en infraestructuras para que pequeños comerciantes y minoristas puedan comercializar productos alimenticios más saludables. También pueden promover la resiliencia mitigando los efectos negativos del cambio climático y adaptándose a ellos (GANESAN, 2020; Heck y Alonso, 2021).

La agricultura urbana y periurbana es una opción importante, con efectos potencialmente positivos en la diversidad dietética, la calidad de los espacios urbanos, las acciones comunitarias, y el empoderamiento. Pero, en la mayoría de las ciudades —especialmente en el Sur del mundo— el apoyo estatal a la agricultura urbana y periurbana es limitado. Por el contrario, la regulación actual de las ciudades y el creciente valor de mercado de la tierra periurbana limitan las oportunidades para la producción local. Un estudio reciente de la FAO concluyó que los gobiernos municipales desempeñan un papel sumamente importante en la identificación y conexión de los actores de los sistemas alimentarios a fin de fomentar iniciativas innovadoras comunitarias que contribuyan a mejorar la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición (FAO, 2020). Por ejemplo, ante las dramáticas consecuencias de la pandemia, los huertos domésticos proporcionaron complementos alimenticios nutritivos y saludables y servicios ecosistémicos (Lal, 2020). Los mercados locales se multiplicaron, al igual que las iniciativas de productores familiares para entregar cestas de alimentos frescos a domicilio y las iniciativas de donación de alimentos a comunidades de bajos ingresos. Muchos habitantes de las zonas urbanas —en especial nuevos migrantes, personas sin papeles y trabajadores informales— se vieron obligados a acudir a bancos de alimentos y organizaciones benéficas, con gran detrimento de su dignidad y arbitrio (Rao et al., 2020). Estas experiencias ponen de relieve la importancia y el potencial de la dimensión territorial de los sistemas alimentarios para la realización del derecho humano a la alimentación (Recine et al., 2021).

Dada la importancia social y económica de las zonas urbanas, es imprescindible abordar los desafíos que plantea la urbanización en relación con la transformación rural, a fin de “reconstruir mejor” tras la pandemia de COVID-19 y las perturbaciones de las cadenas de suministro causadas por la guerra en Ucrania, los conflictos internos y los desastres naturales. Es de vital importancia que las políticas aborden la pobreza y la desigualdad, fomenten la resiliencia y la inclusión social y promuevan medios de vida sostenibles. Las necesidades específicas de los diversos contextos rurales y urbanos, la diferencia entre los distintos tipos de zonas urbanas (p. ej. megaciudades y municipios en zonas mayoritariamente rurales) y los vínculos entre ellas en zonas rurales y urbanas deberían tenerse en cuenta a la hora de formular políticas alimentarias. Por ejemplo, la Nueva Agenda Urbana insta a integrar la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional en la planificación urbana y territorial (ONU-Hábitat, 2016). El informe también podría examinar cuestiones específicas relacionadas con la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición a las que se enfrentan las ciudades en situaciones de conflicto, desastres naturales y otras crisis, en especial cuando dependen de alimentos importados y son vulnerables la volatilidad de los precios.

Es necesario un análisis más profundo de los sistemas alimentarios en el contexto de la urbanización y la transformación rural para garantizar la realización del derecho a la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional en sus seis dimensiones (GANESAN, 2020). En particular, el informe podría investigar el potencial de los mercados territoriales e informales, la economía circular y las cadenas de suministro más cortas para reforzar los vínculos entre la producción y el consumo de alimentos urbanos y periurbanos. El papel de los entornos alimentarios en zonas urbanas es especialmente importante, dada la coexistencia de la distribución organizada (supermercados) y los mercados territoriales e informales, y los efectos negativos de la proliferación de supermercados, que relegan a los establecimientos minoristas de venta de alimentos pequeños y/o informales (Peyton et al. 2015). Es por ello que, algunas partes de las ciudades a menudo las más pobres se han convertido en “desiertos alimentarios” sin apenas productos frescos y saludables. Esto afecta a las dietas urbanas, que ya se caracterizan por dar mayor prioridad a alimentos procesados y precocinados. Además, los centros urbanos y sobre todo las zonas de asentamientos informales se suelen caracterizar por la falta de infraestructuras básicas como el acceso a agua potable y aguas residuales. Por tanto, es necesario prestar atención específica a las necesidades de agua y saneamiento en relación con la utilización de alimentos en zonas urbanas y periurbanas.

Al mismo tiempo, en las zonas urbanas y periurbanas albergan hay innovaciones interesantes para la producción, transformación y distribución de alimentos como huertos verticales, grupos de compra ética e innovaciones de comercialización, que podrían reproducirse en otros contextos. Para reforzar el papel de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos, es fundamental reflexionar sobre la estructura de la gobernanza de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición. Y en especial sobre cómo los ayuntamientos, los expertos en planificación urbana y otros asociados pueden colaborar con actores tradicionalmente involucrados en los sistemas alimentarios y las políticas de seguridad alimentaria y nutrición para potenciar las sinergias. Algunas de las medidas en materia de políticas que se han recomendado en los últimos años para reforzar el papel de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos están relacionadas con la promoción del acceso equitativo a la tierra y los recursos agrícolas productivos para los pequeños productores; la inversión en infraestructuras rurales y urbana; el desarrollo de mercados territoriales y cadenas de suministro cortas; la priorización de la población en situación de pobreza en ciudades y zonas rurales para pueda acceder a alimentos nutritivos y condiciones de vida más saludables; y la anticipación al futuro interconectado de la urbanización y la transformación rural (GANESAN, 2020; Heck y Alonso, 2021).

Sobre la base de los resultados del Grupo de trabajo de composición abierta del CSA sobre urbanización, transformación rural e implicaciones para la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición (CFS 2017/44/6 y CFS 2016/43/11), la bibliografía reciente y los debates sobre políticas, el informe examinará estas cuestiones y formulará recomendaciones sobre políticas para el CSA.

PREGUNTAS PARA ORIENTAR LA CONSULTA ELECTRÓNICA SOBRE EL ALCANCE DEL INFORME DEL GANESAN

El GANESAN desea conocer su opinión sobre el alcance propuesto del informe “Fortalecimiento de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos para alcanzar la seguridad alimentaria y afianzar la nutrición en el contexto de la urbanización y la transformación rural”. En particular, les invita a:

A

Compartir sus comentarios sobre los objetivos y el contenido propuesto de este informe. ¿Considera que el alcance propuesto es suficientemente amplio para analizar y debatir las cuestiones fundamentales relacionadas con el papel de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos en el logro de la seguridad alimentaria y la mejora de la nutrición? ¿Hay alguna laguna u omisión importante?

B

Compartir buenas prácticas y experiencias exitosas sobre el fortalecimiento de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos en el contexto de la urbanización y la transformación rural, incluidos casos de emergencias o conflictos.

C

Compartir bibliografía, estudios de casos y datos recientes que puedan ayudar a responder a las siguientes preguntas:

1.            ¿Cuáles son los principales obstáculos que dificultan la contribución de los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos a la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición?

2.            ¿Cómo se pueden transformar los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos de forma que sean más equitativos y accesibles, tanto para sus actores como en términos de los resultados en materia de seguridad alimentaria y nutrición?

3.            ¿Cómo se puede reforzar la resiliencia de las cadenas urbanas de suministro de alimentos —formales e informales, locales y mundiales— a fin de garantizar la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición en entornos urbanos?

4.            ¿Qué se debe cambiar en la planificación urbana para proporcionar mejor apoyo a todas las dimensiones de la seguridad alimentaria, incluido el apoyo a los derechos humanos, el arbitrio y la sostenibilidad? ¿Cuáles son algunas de las medidas que pueden fortalecer el arbitrio de los actores locales en los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos? 

5.            ¿Cómo pueden los gobiernos nacionales y municipales fomentar ciudades y pueblos con bajas emisiones de carbono, inclusivos, relativamente autosuficientes y resilientes, a fin de impulsar la mejora de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición a raíz del cambio climático y otras crisis?

6.            ¿Cuáles son las políticas más apropiadas (y las lagunas en las políticas ya existentes) en zonas urbanas y rurales para abordar cuestiones relativas a la tenencia de la tierra, la expansión urbana en tierras agrícolas y la creciente competencia por los recursos naturales?

7.            ¿Cómo pueden los sistemas alimentarios urbanos y periurbanos garantizar que se satisfacen las necesidades alimentarias y nutricionales de grupos específicos de personas, como migrantes, desplazados internos, niños, adolescentes, etc.?

8.            ¿Cuáles son los posibles beneficios y desafíos de los mercados territoriales para el fortalecimiento de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición de las poblaciones urbanas?

9.            ¿De qué forma puede generar beneficios climáticos secundarios para todos y reforzar la resiliencia al cambio climático la incorporación de prácticas de agricultura resiliente al clima y economía circular?

10.         ¿Cómo se puede involucrar y empoderar a la ciudadanía a fin de impulsar procesos inclusivos, transparentes y participativos para las transformaciones urbanas, velando por las sinergias y complementariedad con los ayuntamientos?

11.         ¿Qué experiencias de comunidades urbanas para aumentar el acceso a alimentos frescos y dietas saludables pueden inspirar políticas públicas más amplias?

EL GANESAN utilizará los resultados de esta consulta para elaborar el borrador cero del informe y realizar una nueva consulta electrónica. Posteriormente será revisado por pares y se presentará al equipo de redacción y al Comité Directivo del GANESAN para su finalización y aprobación.

Les agradecemos de antemano sus comentarios y contribuciones sobre el alcance de este informe del GANESAN. Los comentarios son bienvenidos en los idiomas inglés, francés y español.

¡El HLPE-FSN espera una consulta rica!

Évariste Nicolétis, Coordinador del GANESAN-FSN

Paola Termine, oficial de programas del GANESAN-FSN

 


BIBLIOGRAFÍA

Acharya, G. Cassou, E. Jaffee, S., Ludher, E.K. 2020. RICH Food, Smart City: How Building Reliable, Inclusive, Competitive, and Healthy Food Systems is Smart Policy for Urban Asia. Washington, DC, World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/35137   

Battersby, J. 2017. Food system transformation in the absence of food system planning: the case of supermarket and shopping mall retail expansion in Cape Town, South Africa. Built Environment, 43(3): 417-430.

FAO. 2020. Ciudades y gobiernos locales a la vanguardia en la construcción de sistemas alimentarios inclusivos y resilientes: Principales resultados de la encuesta de la FAO "Sistemas alimentarios urbanos y COVID-19". Roma.

Heck, S. & Alonso, S. 2021. Resilient Cities Through Sustainable Urban and Peri-Urban Agrifood Systems. Montpellier, France, CGIAR. Resilient-Cities.pdf (storage.googleapis.com)

GANESAN. 2020. Seguridad alimentaria y nutrición: elaborar una descripción global de cara a 2030. Un

informe del Grupo de alto nivel de expertos en seguridad alimentaria y nutrición del Comité de

Seguridad Alimentaria Mundial, Roma. https://www.fao.org/3/ca9731es/ca9731es.pdf

Krishnamurthy, P. K., Choularton, R. J., & Kareiva, P. 2020. Dealing with uncertainty in famine predictions: How complex events affect food security early warning skill in the Greater Horn of Africa. Global Food Security, 26: 100374.

Lal, R. 2020. Home gardening and urban agriculture for advancing food and nutritional security in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Food Security, 12: 871-876. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12571-020-01058-3

Langemeyer, J., Madrid-López, C., Mendoza Beltrán, A. & Villalba Mendez, G. 2021. Urban agriculture — A necessary pathway towards urban resilience and global sustainability? Landscape and Urban Planning, 210: 104055. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169204621000189

Moseley, W. G. 2001. Monitoring urban food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. African Geographical Review, 21(1): 81-90.

Pelling, M., Chow, W. T. L., Chu, E., Dawson, R., Dodman, D., Fraser, A., Hayward, B. et al. 2021. A climate resilience research renewal agenda: learning lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for urban climate resilience. Climate and Development, 0(0): 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2021.1956411

Peyton, S., Moseley, W. & Battersby, J. 2015. Implications of supermarket expansion on urban food security in Cape Town, South Africa. African Geographical Review, 34(1): 36-54.

Rao, N., Narain, N., Chakraborty, S., Bhanjdeo, A. & Pattnaik, A. 2020. Destinations Matter: Social Policy and Migrant Workers in the Times of Covid. The European Journal of Development Research, 32(5): 1639–1661. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7590571/

Recine, E., Preiss, P.V., Valencia, M. et al. 2021. The Indispensable Territorial Dimension of Food Supply: A View from Brazil During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Development, 64: 282–287. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41301-021-00308-x    

Rede Brasileira de Pesquisa em Soberania e Segurança Alimentar (Rede PENSSAN). 2021. VIGISAN National Survey of Food Insecurity in the Context of the Covid-19 Pandemic in Brazil https://olheparaafome.com.br/VIGISAN_AF_National_Survey_of_Food_Insecurity.pdf

Tefft, J., Jonasova, M., Adjao, R. & Morgan, A. 2017. Food systems for an urbanizing world. Washington DC, World Bank and Rome, FAO.

UNDESA (UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs). 2018. 2018 Revision of World Urbanization Prospects. New York. Cited June 2022. https://desapublications.un.org/file/615/download

ONU-Hábitat (Programa de las Naciones Unidas para los Asentamientos Humanos). 2016. The New Urban Agenda. Nairobi. https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2021/10/nueva-agenda-urbana-ilustrada.pdf

 

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A.

  • The proposed scope is quite comprehensive but it lacks focus on women's empowerment in addressing food and nutrition security in the context of urbanization and rural transformation.
  •  Emphasis on food safety, food wastage and food & nutrition loss in the food production and food supply chain is also required. 
  • An inclusive urban design can play a key role in fostering food security in the urban and peri urban areas.  

B. Successful experiences on strengthening urban and peri urban food systems

Farmers' collectives with the help of private partners/ startups have helped maintaining the food supply chains during Covid-19 in India. Few of the examples are 

  • Agrify Organic Solutions, 

It is a Mumbai-based startup had volunteered to home deliver fresh vegetables and fruits during the Covid-19 lockdown and had worked with 500 farmers in Nashik district of India. The procedure followed was 

All the farmers engaged with the startup pack the vegetables and store in clean warehouses from where it goes to Mumbai.

A 6-tonne capacity truck traveled to the metro city every day carrying 2500 boxes from where it is distributed to the housing societies.

All the payments were made via digital modes and a customer was expected to pay only after the delivery.

The boxes were delivered at one point of contact in the society, and every customer was expected to open the box in their house for hygiene purposes.

  • Sahyadri Farms

Sahyadri Farms via its unique inclusive partnership with farmers has built a strong capability over the years in areas of primary processing of food and vegetables, semi-processed products like frozen & aseptic; processed products like fruit jams; tomato ketchup; fruit beverages and food and vegetables waste processing under an integrated zero discharge processing facility.



Sahyadri Farms began with the mission to ensure that the small-landholding farmers of India are given fair compensation for their produce and labour. This was achieved by adhering to global standards of agricultural practices, world-class infrastructure, international food safety standards, and the will to deliver safe, hygienic, and healthy food to the consumers.

During Covid-19 Sahyadri Farms (A Farmers’ Producers collective), was delivering assorted fresh vegetable boxes in Mumbai, Nasik and Pune.

Consumers were able to choose from separate fruits and vegetables boxes and also  with all the staples that they might need.

They were also delivering to housing societies with bulk orders.  

  • These successful example can guide us in designing a sustainable food supply chain that can ensure food and nutrition security even during the emergency conditions.

Aplaudo esta iniciativa. Muchas gracias.

A) En primer lugar creo que objetivo del informe es el adecuado. Lo único que puede inquietarme es la gran diversidad del componente "urbano", ya que hay distintos tipos y morfologías de ciudades, no es igual una ciudad centroeuropea ni cumple las mismas dinámicas sobre su zona "periurbana", de tal forma la expansión de la agricultura urbana depende de la morfología urbana en sí.

B) Hay muchos casos reseñables, sin embargo querría promocionar a los colegas del VAAM- HUNAM. Es un visualizador de ambiente alimentario y gracias a el se pueden establecen puntos de distribución de alimentos. Es una herramienta muy sencilla de trasladar a otros países.

Ortega-Avila, A.G. (2022), Visualizador de Ambiente Alimentario de México (VAAM).Link de acceso: https://vaam.shinyapps.io/vaam/

The observations and comments therein are based on my experience with a hope they will of some use.

Do you find the proposed scope comprehensive to analyze and discuss the key issues concerning the role of urban and peri-urban food systems in achieving food security and nutrition? Are there any major gaps or omissions?

Not many. Gaps will surface during Pragmatization.

1.Food loss and waste prevention to a larger extent is important for betterment of urban and per-urban food systems.

2. MNCs and other foundations can divert their funds intended for charity to purchase foods that go waste

3. In view of the space constraint Vertical Expansion of Food Production is more feasible to meet location specific demands.

Share good practices and successful experiences on strengthening urban and peri-urban food systems in the context of urbanization and rural transformation, including in the case of emergencies or conflicts?

The White Spot Disease in Tiger prawn (Penaeus monodon) resulted in devastating losses to the aquaculture industry. All the aquaculturists switched on to Pacific White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei). Details of highly successful case study provided below.   

Introduction of new shrimp species Litopenaeus vannamei has brought a sea change in Indian shrimp production and processing industry. Andhra Pradesh is a leading state in cultured shrimp production and the present study investigates the changing trends in cultured shrimp production and its impact on seafood processing of the State. Results of the study showed that 83.6% of the cultured shrimp production in Andhra Pradesh was attributed to L. vannamei. With the increase in production, structural changes became pre-requisite for seafood processing firms and they have incorporated changes such as establishment of additional plants, increasing the capacity utilization of existing plants and installation of more efficient equipment. There was an increase of 37.12% in installed capacity and 53.1% increase in capacity utilization of shrimp processing plants due to increased shrimp production. Spill-over effects were visible; employment opportunities and income of the employees increased. Strict implementation of scientific farming techniques and quality management are vital to sustain growth of the industry (Ashok, A.,  et al, 2015)

Ref: Arathy Ashok, L. N. Murthy, B. Madhusudana Rao, Jesmi Debbarma, M. M. Prasad1, V. Geetha Lakshmi and Nikita Gopal (2015). Impact of Pacific White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) on Shrimp Production and Seafood Processing in Andhra Pradesh. Fishery Technology 52: 53 – 57.

Based on the experience in-puts were provided for each query

  1. What are the main bottlenecks hampering the contribution of urban and peri-urban food systems to food security and nutrition?

i. Continuous increase in urban population.

ii. Migratory nature of population of intra-country and inter-country

  1. How can urban and peri-urban food systems be transformed and made more equitable and accessible both for food system actors and in terms of food security and nutrition outcomes?

1. Better transportation, especially for perishable food produce

2. Development of innovative value added products from glut produce. This caters to the urban nutritive requirements and also improvement in socio-economic conditions of the primary producers.

  1. How can urban food supply chains, formal and informal, local and global, be made more resilient to ensure food security and nutrition within urban settings?

1. Incentvize all the players to ensure quality from farm to fork

2. Development quality guidelines for all miscellaneous products.

  1. What changes are needed in urban planning to better support all dimensions of food security – including support for human rights, agency and sustainability? Which are some of the measures that can strengthen the agency of local actors in urban and peri-urban food systems? 

1. Provide sufficient space for sale of produce

2. Hand holding of Small players  in Business, Planning and Development

3. Making all transactions virtual. 

 

  1. How can national and municipal governments strengthen the potential for low-carbon, inclusive, relatively self-sufficient and resilient cities and towns to drive improved food security and nutrition in the wake of climate change and other crises?

1. Enhancement in application of solar energy

2. Transportation  by electrical vehicles

  1. What are the most appropriate policies (and gaps in existing policies) along the rural-urban continuum to address issues of land tenure, urban expansion into farmland and the growing competition for natural resources?

1. Absence of guidelines.

2. Implementation of existing policies.

  1. How can urban and peri-urban food systems ensure that food and nutrition needs of specific groups of people, such as migrants, the internally-displaced, children, adolescent, etc., are met?

This is very good question. All the times world over efforts are centered on enhanced level of food production and nutritive values of the same but not satiates of ethnic or migrant populations. This is not a major problem for South Asia that harbors one fifth of world population as food habits of habitants are more or less same. However, satiety needs can be met with imitation products.

  1. What are the potential benefits and challenges of territorial markets for strengthening food security and nutrition for urban populations?

1. Over all development in economy, GDP are immediate benefits

2.If we concentrate on population per se big players get benefit and if it is territorial markets small scale businesses develop.

  1. In what ways can the incorporation of climate resilient agricultural and circular economy practices in urban and peri-urban agriculture provide climate co-benefits for all and enhance climate resilience?

1. Reduction in poverty levels.

2. Generation of sustainable income.

3. Enhancement in wellbeing of humans. This in turn better health and lessening of DALY, improved QALY and ILY. Enhanced levels of productivity. Less burden on exchequer of respective nations in managing infections

  1. How can citizens be engaged and empowered to drive inclusive, transparent, participatory processes for urban transformations, ensuring synergies and complementarity with city councils?

As mentioned earlier making everything, virtual with simplest possible local language .   

  1. Which experiences of urban communities to increase access to fresh food and healthy diets can inspire broader public policies?

1. Reduction in lifestyle diseases.

 

Didem Mahsunlar

Turkey

Dear leaders - I received and would like to contribute to the scope of Strengthening urban and peri-urban food systems to achieve food security and nutrition in the context of urbanization and rural transformation

I find the proposed scope comprehensive  but potential 2 directions would add more relevant depth to cover some gaps and omissions:

-Scope within boundaries: Provisioning and evaluating resources of cities and supporting gaps as per urban boundaries and mapping of current state vs future state would create a measure for self sufficiency and a road to transformation. This analysis and language especially in state of emergency like earthquakes, famines, wars.. are lacking this clarity of preparedness ,mitigation and recovery stages.



Especially water- food and energy logistics would be key pillars to strengthen in the food security context. A similar study is prepared for Istanbul city with the context of emergency preparedness especially for risks as earthquakes and other potential climate related risks.



-Virtual trade of resources and impact within boundaries: Impact of food miles and embedded resources at the point of consumption ( or waste at that matter) is not immediately referred to and acted against. CREATE project ( Cross-Border Climate Vulnerabilities and Remote Impacts of Food Systems of the EU, Turkey and Africa is investigating Trade, Climate Risk and Adaptation across trade routes and products with the aim to address remote climate risks and impacts related to food systems, Cross Border Vulnerabilities of food also applies to city boundaries and able to develop a novel cross-border climate risk/impact assessment methodology for food value chains based on embedded resource use (e.g. water, land, carbon) trade concept . See more in Create4climate.com “Strengthening urban and peri-urban food systems to achieve food security and nutrition in the context of urbanization and rural transformation”
,

Looking fwd to further collaboration and input. Kind regards

 
Didem Mahsunlar
Sn R&D Consultant - Food Chain

I. Talk of urban food systems, and rooftop vegetable and fruit gardens for regular supply of fresh fruits and vegetables is an immediate thought. With growth of gated communities and urban apartment complexes in cities, this can be a viable proposition, where producers themselves are consumers and creating employment for gardeners. There should also be a mechanism of waste recycling by production of vermicompost to enhance soil fertility and even biogas production if feasible. Likewise, common area in urban slums can be managed by self help groups of women to grow and sell vegetables. 

II. Reducing food loss and waste should be a major initiative in all urban areas, as part of food systems transformation:  

i. City corporations need to have initiatives for collection of waste from wet markets and its processing. The private sector can be encouraged to partner in this.  Energy generation from food waste can be explored. 

ii. Initiatives for collection of unused food from restaurants and eateries and its redistribution to the needy will help reduce food loss.  

III. Fruit trees should be planted in parks and open spaces, with an eye on nutrition. An example is the number of jackfruit (national fruit of Bangladesh) trees along the streets and in parks in Dhaka

IV. Cities such as Kolkata and Dhaka with abundant freshwater bodies can promote freshwater aquaculture; fish processing enterprises can be promoted.

V. The Covid-19 pandemic clearly brought home the relevance of shorter, local value chains. An urban-peri urban connect of producers and consumers may be created for sourcing of vegetables, fruits, milk, and the like.

VI. The poor, destitute, and aged, should be covered by Social Protection schemes, for food security. Urban Employment Guarantee initiative for creation of public works can provide employment and create purchasing power.

VII. Access to safe drinking water, Rainwater harvesting and recycling of waste water have to be part of the urban food system transformation agenda. 

  

Visakha Tillekeratne

FAO
Sri Lanka
  1.  One of the most important pre-requisites in starting this line of change is to convince people about the issue. The gravity of not strengthening systems in the urban and peri urban arena should be communicated in simple and elegant language. Communities should change their behavior about the importance of local food security through facts and figures.
  2. The burden of doing extra work in the midst of sometimes hectic urban schedules should be given high consideration, especially women who are most often tending the household, to caring for children, dealing with violence and also working in the garden. Careful assessments should be made of the number of hours of ALL work by both males and females. Based on this agriculture should be made convenient, with starter packs, easy grow methods and also information on quantification of the optimum number of plants required according to number of family members and how much produce would be yielded. When this info is put out there, it is very convincing.
  3. The impact of urban produce on local markets and also rural produce marketing in urban centres is another aspect
  4. Hygiene and sanitation implications of disposal of plant matter is another consideration as post harvest losses as well as discarded elements could increase the garbage load in urban centres if not carefully managed.
  5. GAP will be important if not there is a danger of chemicals lying around and being a hazard to the households.
  6. The nutrition mainstreaming and landscaping of home gardens are two important elements. Therefore households should for example be convinced to have 7 different vegetables, 7 types of greens and different types of fruit for diversity of the diet throughout the week. This requires training their minds for planning the garden as well as planning their menu.

Hope this will be helpful

Visakha Tillekeratne

Consultant FAO Sri Lanka

Yes, the report provides a clear picture on how food systems can be transformed for the benefit of the cities/town population. There is a need to trade-off between agriculture production and agro-processing in the context of urban vs rural setting, due to the fact that there is inadequate land in the towns/cities. The issue of land has been covered well, but it needs more emphasis regarding putting policies on availability and affordable land for food and agriculture production in the town planning processes. By the way, I am not sure if is there any country with a policy on urban and peri-urban food systems?

If possible, the government may look at resettlement initiatives as many cities and towns are unplanned (squatters). And also, link the urban food systems with youth and women in terms of accessing technologies, knowledge and farming skills – how the R&D institutions can target urban food production.

The most critical aspect from food production right to consumption is food waste among urban populations – thus the need to devise technologies and supportive measures targeting the households. This also can go in tandem with mindset change in terms of food habits and culture.

The report is silent on indigenous food, as this is critical for food diversification and nutrition in urban population. Currently, many of the urban populations are the ones who suffer a lot in non-communicable diseases as opposed to the rural populations, implying that consumption of local food has led to healthier being. It is also imperative to emphasize food safety as most of the water sources in our cities/towns, particularly in the Global South are more polluted

How can we make the food supply chains more efficient and economical, something which will attract bankable investments and lure more entrepreneurs. In this regard, there is a need to raise educational campaign for any urban farming to apply highly adaptable and resilient technologies and innovations.

The need to devise urban food security platforms for sharing the practices and issues among proponents of the urban food systems, and also most importantly, particularly at the Municipal/City Councils to assign a desk or focal point responsible for overseeing urban food systems. The said platforms can also organize annual conferences for sharing information. But at the entry point, we need to develop a baseline data, and subsequent time series dataset against which, the performance/ achievement and impact can be derived – a strong M&E systems. I want also to emphasize here that the report should state for sound and coherent data and information which can be input a e-database/platform – this can also assist in conducting urban and peri-urban food system simulation and prediction.

Sr. Ahmed Sourani

Gaza Urban & Peri-urban Agriculture Platform (GUPAP)
Territorio Palestino Ocupado

Urban and peri-urban agriculture is a key strategy to enhance resilience of local food system notably in protracted crisis conditions, GUPAP is facilitating and supporting 2 relevant community-led spaces; Urban Women Agripreneurs Forum (UWAF) and City Food System Actors Network (CFSAN). Please see attached informative files and GUPAP website gupap.org  

Dear CFS/HLPE-FSN Team,

Thank you for the opportunity given to me to provide feedback. Kindly see our contributions and case study below.

I’m sharing the following contributions from my experience as a Farmer and Commodity trader:

1.            What are the main bottlenecks hampering the contribution of urban and peri-urban food systems to food security and nutrition?

One of the bottlenecks hampering the contribution of urban and peri-urban food security and nutrition is high cost of labor and unqualified human capital caused by urban-rural migration. Most city dwellers today are migrants and internally displaced persons who use to be smallholder farmers in the rural areas in times past. The youth have abandoned the farms and sojourned for white collar jobs and greener pastures leaving behind the old and aged adults and women as food producers.  Those who were forcefully displaced by climate events such as floods and insecurity challenges also migrated and added to the population number of urban dwellers resulting in too many mouths to feed, but less human and natural resources to produce enough food in abundance.

2.            How can urban and peri-urban food systems be transformed and made more equitable and accessible both for food system actors and in terms of food security and nutrition outcomes?

Urban and peri-urban food systems can be transformed with the elevation and promotion of indigenous food systems which are mostly staple foods in an average home in low-income countries. Increasing the production capacity of smallholder farmers and women to grow more indigenous food crops will make urban and peri-urban food systems to become more equitable, available, accessible and affordable all year round.

3.            How can urban food supply chains, formal and informal, local and global, be made more resilient to ensure food security and nutrition within urban settings?

Urban food supply chains, formal and informal, local and global can be made more resilient to ensure food security and nutrition with urban settings through favorable agricultural policy and regulatory frameworks, sufficient finance schemes, strong domestic research and innovations, strong government investments in agriculture.

4.            What changes are needed in urban planning to better support all dimensions of food security – including support for human rights, agency and sustainability? Which are some of the measures that can strengthen the agency of local actors in urban and peri-urban food systems?

The changes that are needed in urban planning to better support all dimensions of food security – including support for human rights, agency and sustainability increased access to land, establishment of food producers and market clusters, enforcement of price control and volatility regulations. The above mentioned measures if implemented that can strengthen the agency of local actors in urban and peri-urban food systems

5.            How can national and municipal governments strengthen the potential for low-carbon, inclusive, relatively self-sufficient and resilient cities and towns to drive improved food security and nutrition in the wake of climate change and other crises?

Women are catalysts and agents of change, to drive inclusive self-sufficient and resilient cities and towns to drive improved food security and nutrition in the wake of climate change and insecurity threats; national and municipal governments strengthen the potential and production capacity of women small-scale food processors to curb food loss and waste.

6.            What are the most appropriate policies (and gaps in existing policies) along the rural-urban continuum to address issues of land tenure, urban expansion into farmland and the growing competition for natural resources?

Establishment of home-grown gardens in the urban settings and agricultural clusters in the rural areas especially in communities that have comparative advantage to most sought-after staple and indigenous food crops to address issues of land tenure, urban expansion into farm lands and the growing competition for natural resources.

7.            How can urban and peri-urban food systems ensure that food and nutrition need of specific groups of people, such as migrants, the internally-displaced, children, adolescent, etc., are met?

From my experience as a farmer and commodity trader, I observed that most staple foods even when they are in season are not available, accessible and affordable. The daily food and nutrition need of the vulnerable population such as migrants, the internally displaced, pregnant women, children and adolescents dwelling in the urban areas are never met as a result of this. The interference of middlemen who manipulate and extort the farmers to sell at lower prices with small profit, still make it impossible in such a way that is even when they are available, most times not too fresh or too expensive and out of reach for the common man on the street. This is where price regulations from market forces such as commodity boards should come into play to enforce price control and volatility regulations. Unfortunately, there’s an insignificant existence of this price regulation bodies in low-income countries, rather what we have is intermittent artificial scarcity of food created most times by traders and commodity associations especially when they are in high demand. I’m suggesting that in the absence of existing commodity boards in the meantime, policy makers and Regional Trade Areas (RTAs), farmers traders, distributors. Processors, transporters and all actors in the food value chain should come to a roundtable dialogue and find a lasting solution to all this unnecessary spike in food prices in urban and peri-urban areas.

8.            What are the potential benefits and challenges of territorial markets for strengthening food security and nutrition for urban populations?

The potential benefits of having territorial markets for strengthening food security and nutrition for urban population is increased profit and production capacity of farmers and other actors in the value chain. But there’s also the danger of monoculture cultivation of crops that are in high demand by city dwellers to the neglect of most nutritious and more affordable indigenous food crops. 

Another major challenge is the infiltration of territorial markets with imported processed exotic foods. This discourages city dwellers and consumers from patronizing local farmers and other food value chain actors, after laboring for so much with little or nothing to show or have adequate return on their investments.

9.            In what ways can the incorporation of climate resilient agricultural and circular economy practices in urban and peri-urban agriculture provide climate co-benefits for all and enhance climate resilience?

Development of farm markets in the cities and urban centers for easy market access to farmers to avoid food loss, middlemen exploitation and also help them sell their farm produce at a good price to earn more profit.

10.         How can citizens be engaged and empowered to drive inclusive, transparent, participatory processes for urban transformations, ensuring synergies and complementarity with city councils?

More provision of finance schemes and increased access to public procurement, standard conformity and certification of products for safe consumption.

11.         Which experiences of urban communities to increase access to fresh food and healthy diets can inspire broader public policies?

Provision of necessary infrastructures in the rural areas such as roads, water, irrigation facilities and power supply can catalyze increase access to fresh food and healthy diets that is also affordable and accessible all year round.

Asikaralu Okafor, Executive Director

Village Farmers Initiative (VFI) Nigeria.