A refined study by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) involving 156 countries confirms that hidden costs within global agrifood systems amount to approximately $12 trillion annually. Of this, around 70 percent ($8.1 trillion) arise from unhealthy dietary patterns...

Yogyakarta, 6 November 2024 – In response to global and national challenges posed by emerging threats, including zoonotic diseases, the Indonesian government, under the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) a...

In Liberia’s countryside, where the livelihoods of farmers and communities are tightly woven with the health of their livestock, a new chapter in public and animal health is unfolding. Thanks to the support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), through its Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Liberia has embarked on its first active surveillance of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), paving the way for improved health measures and disease prevention.

On October 16, 2024, global experts, partners, and youth leaders gathered in Rome at the World Food Forum for the hybrid event “Empowering Youth to End Child Labour in Agriculture,” renewing their commitment to eradicate child labour in agriculture. The event showcased diverse perspectives, strategies, and interventions to tackle child labour, which affects an estimated 160 million children worldwide—70% of whom are involved in agriculture under conditions that deprive them of education, safety, and a healthy childhood.

The Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) received 40 tablets from the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat to boost pest surveillance and protect plant health. The state-of-the-art tablets contain specialized software and mobile applications designed for conducting active surveillance and rapid detection of pests that can severely impact food safety, food security, and international trade.

The eyes of Aishagul Duganova, a 48-year-old mother of three, light up as she talks about her new greenhouse, which is bringing with it a new stability amidst her family's health problems and money troubles. In the village of Koram, around 150 kilometers east of Almaty in Kazakhstan, Aishagul's life has been marked by her husband’s debilitating injury and the severe illnesses of her elderly parents-in-law.

As part of ongoing efforts to promote global animal health, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and the International Alliance for Biological Standardization (IABS) recently hosted a meeting to share advancements and discuss strategies for surveillance in populations vaccinated for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

Policy makers, researchers and the public have a new resource to gauge the scale and importance of agrifood systems in providing employment around the world. FAO has launched five new indicators and overhauled the data available on its FAOSTAT portal, the global go-to resource for those interested in agrifood facts and rural livelihoods.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concluded its impactful participation in the 2024 UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16) in Cali, Colombia, where its central message—agrifood systems play a critical role in achieving biodiversity goals—reverberated throughout the two-week event.

The Quadripartite collaboration on One Health – comprising the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) – co-organized the G20 High-Level Meeting on One Health on 30 October 2024. This event featured a panel discussion titled "Creating an Enabling Environment for One Health Implementation," emphasizing the critical need for robust governance and multisectoral coordination to advance the One Health approach, supported by real-life examples from various countries.

In Des Moines, Iowa at the 2024 Borlaug Dialogue World Food Prize, FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero opened "The Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils: Advancing the Global Movement" session at World Food Prize 2024 side event. He addressed the urgent need to invest in creating demand for opportunity crops to help solve the global nutritional challenges we face today.

Acute food insecurity is set to increase in both magnitude and severity across 22 countries and territories, according to a new United Nations report. The report warns that the spread of conflict, particularly in the Middle East – coupled with climate and economic stressors - is pushing millions of people to the brink.

At World Food Prize 2024, FAO Director-General champions ways science and innovation can contribute to transforming agrifood systems and bring people and cultures closer together.

In Gaza, ongoing hostilities have caused the collapse of local food production and contributed to the rapid deterioration of food security. Here, FAO’s distribution of livestock fodder and veterinary kits provides a lifeline amid catastrophic losses.

FAO’s open-access portal for monitoring water productivity through remote sensing, WaPOR, was featured at the OECD Conference titled “Sustainable Agricultural Productivity to Address Food Systems Challenges: Measurement, Data, Drivers, and Policies” on 28 October 2024 at the OECD Headquarters in Paris.

About a quarter of the population in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to face acute hunger, according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis released today. The new data shows that between July and December 2024, approximately 25.6 million people in the DRC, or 22 percent of the population analysed, are experiencing high acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above). 

The 48th session of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL) has commenced in Quebec City, Canada, with first-time Chairperson Dr Parthi Muthukumarasamy presiding.

At this year’s COP16 Biodiversity Conference, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is focused on helping Members move from pledges to plans. While biodiversity goals are often associated with exotic animals, pristine wilderness and nature preservation zones, the key to global success is to ensure peace with nature by not only protecting but ensuring the sustainable management of biodiversity in agriculture and food systems.

The 4th annual World Food Forum (WFF), held from October 14 to 18, brought together thousands of young leaders from around the world to address challenges in agrifood systems under the theme “Good Food for All, for Today and Tomorrow.” This year, American and Canadian youth were well represented among the delegations.

In a landmark decision, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) has approved funding for two transformative projects valued at $134 million, to support adaptation and enhance the climate resilience of vulnerable agricultural communities in Somalia and Iraq. These initiatives, spearheaded by FAO, will empower millions of farmers and pastoralists to adapt to the escalating impacts of climate change, including droughts, floods, and water scarcity.