Concluding a successful week of activities to commemorate  World Food Day 2019, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the World Food Programme (WFP), with the support and participation  of the Permanent Mission of Jamaica, the World Health Organization (WHO) and  FIAN International hosted a lively interactive panel discussion focusing on the theme of this year’s World Food Day "Healthy Diets for a #ZeroHunger World."

Meeting at the WCC headquarters in Geneva, the panelists reflected on the dual challenge of ending hunger and halting obesity and overweight. Global figures are not that good. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report (SOFI 2019) showed that the total number of undernourished people in the world is increasing, with some 820 million people suffering from hunger. On the other hand, rates of overweight and obesity are increasing worldwide affecting both developing and developed countries. A third urgent challenge discussed was the high levels of food loss and waste which now stands at 1/3 of all food produced. The panelists acknowledged that these global challenges require urgent action by all stakeholders including producers, retailers, consumers and policy makers.

“We have to reflect why we are increasingly trapped in a combination of unhealthy diets and sedentary lifestyles leading to obesity and non- communicable diseases”, said Dr. Isabel Apawo Phiri, Deputy Secretary General, World Council of Churches (WCC) in her opening remarks. She also added that unhealthy diets and lifestyles are often not only dependent on the choice of individuals.  “Poverty, inequity, lack of access to land and resources, conflicts, climate change, compromising food sovereignty and self-determination, are all linked directly to how people access nutritious food and lead healthy lives,” added the WCC representative.

Director of the FAO Office in Geneva, Ms. Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett reminded the audience that the establishment of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on 16 October 1945 in the midst of war “was an  important step in mankind’s recognition that the struggle against hunger and malnutrition was a global concern to all peoples and, to defeat it, will required the efforts of all”. Pointing out that there has been much progress since 1945, Ms Birkett said that the progress has been uneven and many challenges still remain while new ones have emerged. Apart from hunger, she reminded that 2.4 billion adults, adolescents and children are overweight and 1/3 of these are obese.  In addition to hunger, ‘Rising rates of non-communicable diseases, concomitant health care costs, reduction in productivity, and generally, a reduced quality of life is what confront us now.” 

Dr. Francesco Branca, Director of Nutrition, Health and Development of the World Health Organization (WHO), pointed out that while the number of undernourished people have been reduced in the long term, there has been a reversal and increase in the past years. On top of that, there are further challenges occasioned by climate change and other complexities of development.  “The attention that FAO is giving to Healthy Diets is absolutely well placed, he said. Today, “unhealthy diets, malnutrition and obesity are the key causes of world deaths”.  Emphasizing that change is required at all levels, he said that the issue is not only personal choice but also, the food environment is not one that is supportive to healthy diets. Changes are required in the production, retail, distribution and consumption of food.  The decade of action on nutrition 2016-2025 has seen countries making a lot of efforts and in 2020 there will be a mid-term review.

A very comprehensive presentation from the perspective of food production systems and food as a human right, was provided by Ms. Ana Maria Suarez-Franco of FIAN International. Focusing on key human rights instruments including on the right to food and the declaration on the rights of peasants, she made a call for a transition in food systems making it more rational and people centred. This must take into account environmental, economic and social concerns. Over production of ultra- processed foods, lack of diversity of food as a result of standardized diets, and protecting and respecting those who produce our foods are issues that must be addressed in this transition, she submitted.

Bringing a country perspective to the discussion, Ambassador Cheryl Spencer of Jamaica brought the experience of her own country. She informed about several approaches that Jamaica has taken to ensure a healthy population. This includes the renaming the Ministry of Health to the Ministry of Health and Wellness, healthy school feeding programs, mindset change programs and boosting agriculture to reduce the high import bill which now stands at USD$902 million.   “We take a multi-sectoral approach,” she said, while highlighting that Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are responsible for some 15% of Jamaica’s health budget and 7 out of 10 deaths are linked to NCDs. The “Jamaica Moves” campaign has become an example for the Caribbean region in boosting actions for a healthy society, said Ambassador Spencer.

Gordana Jerger, Director of the World Food Programme in Geneva brought to the discussion the challenges experienced in ensuring food security and nutrition in situations of conflicts and emergencies. “The fact that we have not curved down the numbers of malnourished people, especially those at crisis level is due to countries in conflicts but also due to natural disasters” she said. Blockedports, check points and non-functioning markets are all hindrances to getting food to people in cases of emergencies.   To have the “right food at the right time is important”, she said. Ms Jerger also called for better targeting in emergencies as current humanitarian responses do not recognize the differences between acute and other forms of malnutrition. She also shared a very innovative example, that WFP developed to improve data management in nutrition programmes thought a digital identity card, which also tracks nutrition and health care such as vaccination.

“We face a critical situation in terms of food and the ecological status of the planet.” This was an alert sounded by Mr. Ludovic Larbodière, Senior Expert for Agriculture and Environment of IUCN.  Demonstrating the linkage between Climate Change, Biodiversity and Food Security he underscored that the “Majority of food insecure people, vulnerable people to climate change are in rural areas and most are farmers.”  He stressed that food systems contribute between 17-32% of the greenhouses emissions. The need for greater focus on biodiversity preservation is crucial, since it plays an important role in pollination, pests control, reducing disasters such as floods and to mitigate climate change. He also highlighted the important role for developing agro-ecological policies, including change in food distribution with new guidelines aimed at promoting sustainable consumption and health food.

Following a very interactive discussion with the audience, Director of the FAO Office, Ms. Rodrigues Birkett brought the event to a close by informing that Food Systems is on the top of the global agenda. As a result, United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Antonio Gutteres announced on World Food Day of his decision to convene a Food Systems Summit in 2021. This will provide an opportunity to reflect on the progress made and the solutions that are needed to meet the challenges which confront us now.

Relevant links:

FAO World Food Day 2019 website

Webcasting of the WCC, FAO and WFP Interactive Panel Discussion – 22 October 2019

2019 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI)

2019 State of Food and Agriculture Report (SOFA): Moving Forward on Food Loss and Waste Reduction

FAO/WHO Sustainable Healthy Diets Guiding Principles