At USDA, Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol highlights innovation as key driver for food-secure future
Washington, DC -Speaking at the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 100th Agricultural Outlook Forum, Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) addressed the vital role of innovation to transform agrifood systems and shape the future of global agricultural productivity and resilience.
In the high-level panel discussion, “100 Years of Agricultural Trade: A Century of Growth, Innovation and Progress,” moderated by USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Alexis Taylor, DDG Bechdol took a forward-looking perspective on technology and innovation in agrifood systems given the current context of conflicts and climate change. She focused on the necessity to use these tools to grow the productivity and resilience of agrifood systems in the combat against food insecurity. Also participating in the panel discussion were Sharon Sydow, Senior Economist at the USDA Office of Chief Economist and Jeffrey Schott, U.S. Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Agricultural innovation and technologies to boost productivity and resilience
DDG Bechdol noted that today the forces that are most impacting food insecurity are conflicts, economic shocks and, increasingly, weather extremes. These persistent factors weigh heavily on agricultural productivity, markets and supply chains, agricultural assets and even risks for human health. Of the 258 million people who are acutely food insecure, a significant majority are small-scale farmers who live in rural areas. As Bechdol pointed out, they are often the first to suffer and the furthest left behind by recovery efforts.
Against this backdrop, Bechdol detailed how agricultural innovation and technologies represent unparalleled opportunities to improve the resilience of agrifood systems and the means for the communities most affected not only to survive but also to restore their livelihoods and self-reliance. Among the innovations that FAO is using to help farmers, she highlighted developing drought and disease-resistant seeds through biotechnology, gene editing and other techniques; modern equipment and automation to improve efficiency; using drones for early warning and preventative control of pests, like the desert locust; digital soil mapping to monitor soil health and for efficient use of fertilizers, artificial intelligence for the detection of plant diseases; and geospatial tools to monitor deforestation.
“Innovations in agriculture cut across all dimensions of production and relevant value chains - from crop, forestry, fishery or livestock production to the management of inputs and resources and market access. But these innovations and technological advancements must be affordable, adaptable and accessible to all,” remarked DDG Bechdol.
Pointing to the “Vision for Adapted Crops” (VACS) initiative, where FAO is partnering with the U.S. Department of State, USAID’s Feed the Future and the African Union, DDG Bechdol made the case that science combined with innovation and technology offers the potential to boost agricultural productivity by developing diverse, climate-resilient crop varieties and building healthy soils to support resilience. In conjunction with the VACS initiative, the U.S. government’s collaboration with FAO on the SoilFER project, which has received $30 million in funding to-date for projects in Guatemala, Honduras, Zambia, Ghana and Kenya, addresses the challenge of more efficiently using fertilizer, water, and other resources by using soil mapping technology, providing farmers with the tools and knowledge they need to make informed decisions about fertilizer use and soil management.
Challenges to global agricultural trade
Given the importance of agricultural trade to support and fortify food security, DDG Bechdol drew attention to the effect of conflicts and climate change on global trade. Current threats to global markets and trade that FAO is closely monitoring include the impact of the El Niño, not only on agriculture and food security, but also on the shipping routes through the Panama Canal which are suffering from low-water levels that is further exacerbated by the continuing El Niño event. In the Black Sea and the Red Sea shipping corridors, conflicts are increasing the risks to vessels and infrastructure. The possible consequences of re-routing to avoid war-affected zones are increases in shipping costs that would ultimately impact food import bills of many countries and food prices for consumers. From a climate perspective, these changes could also result in a surge in greenhouse gas emissions from ships traveling greater distances at higher speeds.
Notwithstanding the cumulative effects of shocks to global trade ,innovations and technological advancements support the continued efficient operation of global agrifood systems and supply chains. Applied technologies can facilitate trade by helping suppliers in developing countries comply with import requirements from developed countries, such as the IPPC electronic phytosanitary certificate (Ephyto) system. More recently, FAO has developed blockchain tools to improve supply chain traceability to promote environmentally sustainable supply chains. These tools help agricultural producers and traders measure the carbon and water footprints on selected crops, enabling organizations to make informed decisions regarding climate impact.
FAO and the USDA
FAO’s focus is on the transformation of agrifood systems to be more resilient and sustainable, as a long-term solution to address food insecurity. FAO has a central role to play in achieving the global goals of ending hunger and improving food security by its international standard setting, market monitoring and analysis, response to food insecurity in emergencies, and dissemination of innovation and technology.
FAO and USDA continue to work together to build a more food secure world through the global standard setting entities, which include FAO’s Codex Alimentarius Commission for food safety standards, the intergovernmental International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) to protect the world’s plant resources from pests and promoting safe trade. The Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) is an inter-agency platform developed by FAO to enhance food market transparency which has received strong support from the U.S. government.
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