Publications
The State of the World
FAO’s State of the World collection comprises the Organization’s flagship reports. Published annually or biennially, these are data-rich and analytically complex publications: they provide a global snapshot of topics associated with food and agriculture.
The collection is increasingly structured to gauge progress towards the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is aimed at policymakers; donors; international organizations; academia; and journalists and researchers specializing in food security, agrifood systems, the environment and international development.
The State of Food and Agriculture
Addressing land degradation across landholding scales
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World
Addressing high food price inflation for food security and nutrition
The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture 2025
publication
The 2025 edition of The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture underscores the urgent challenges of human-induced land degradation, water scarcity, and climate change, and their impact on agricultural productivity and ecosystems.
The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets
Trade, resilience and food security: Global food markets under stress
The State of the World's Forests
Forest pathways for green recovery
The State of Fisheries and Aquaculture
Blue Transformation in action
Recent Publications
FAO Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Agricultural Sectors
10/2020
The FAO strategy on mainstreaming biodiversity was approved at the FAO Conference in 2019, in view of preparations for the post-2020 global biodiversity framework. The Strategy aims to mainstream biodiversity across agricultural sectors at national, regional and international levels in a structured and coherent manner, taking into account national priorities, needs, regulations and policies and country programming frameworks.
World Food and Agriculture - Statistical Yearbook 2020
10/2020
This publication offers a synthesis of the major factors at play in the global food and agricultural landscape. Statistics are presented in four thematic chapters, covering the economic importance of agricultural activities, inputs, outputs and factors of production, their implications for food security and nutrition and their impacts on the environment.
FAO at 75 - Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together
10/2020
Seventy-five years down the line, FAO’s name, ambition, and spirit remain: everything else has changed, and will change further. Born in 1945 amid the idealism of post-war reconstruction, FAO sets out to increase farm output around the world and make famines a thing of the past. Over the subsequent 75 years, FAO’s outlook and body of work acquire new environmental and sustainability dimensions.
State of Agricultural Commodity Markets 2020
09/2020
This edition of the State of Agricultural Commodity Markets focuses on how markets can bring us closer to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. SOCO 2020 offers a detailed analysis of the major global trends in agri-food markets and trade to identify how to reap economic, environmental and social gains and spur overall development. The report makes an important contribution to the debate on how well-functioning markets can contribute to inclusive economic growth...
Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020
07/2020
FAO completed its first assessment of the world’s forest resources in 1948. At that time, its major objective was to collect information on available timber supply to satisfy post-war reconstruction demand. Since then, the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) has evolved into a comprehensive evaluation of forest resources and their condition, management and uses, covering all the thematic elements of sustainable forest management. This, the latest of these assessments, examines the status of, and trends...
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report 2020
07/2020
Updates for many countries have made it possible to estimate hunger in the world with greater accuracy this year. In particular, newly accessible data enabled the revision of the entire series of undernourishment estimates for China back to 2000, resulting in a substantial downward shift of the series of the number of undernourished in the world. The report complements the usual assessment of food security and nutrition with projections of what the world may look...
State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2020
06/2020
The 2020 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture has a particular focus on sustainability. This reflects a number of specific considerations. First, 2020 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (the Code). Second, several Sustainable Development Goal indicators mature in 2020. Third, FAO hosted the International Symposium on Fisheries Sustainability in late 2019, and fourth, 2020 sees the finalization of specific
Strengthening food security through innovative aquaculture management
05/2020
Joining hands in partnership since 2010, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Mississippi State University (MSU) are collaborating to exchange resources, expertise, experience and knowledge to improve food and nutrition security and alleviate poverty through sustainable aquaculture development efforts.
The State of the World’s Forests 2020
05/2020
The State of the World’s Forests 2020 assesses progress to date in meeting global targets and goals related to forest biodiversity and examines the effectiveness of policies, actions and approaches, in terms of both conservation and sustainable development outcomes. A series of case studies provide examples of innovative practices that combine conservation and sustainable use of forest biodiversity to create balanced solutions for both people and the planet.
2020 Global Report on Food Crises
04/2020
The 2020 Global Report on Food Crises indicates that at the close of 2019, 135 million people across 55 countries and territories experienced acute food insecurity (IPC/CH Phase 3 or above). The Global Report on Food Crises is the flagship publication of the Global Network against Food Crises and is facilitated by the Food Security Information Network (FSIN). The Report is the result of a consensus-based and multi-partner analytical process involving 16 international humanitarian and development partners.
FAO + Canada | Building resilience and women’s empowerment for food security and nutrition
04/2020
Since 1945, Canada and FAO have worked together towards finding solutions to many of the most pressing problems of our time, and tested new ways of delivering support to those most in need. Through total contributions of CAD 71 million1 (USD 53.5 million) between 2018 and 2019, Canada has enabled FAO to reach vulnerable populations in crisis-affected areas, while contributing to rural transformation through investments in agricultural productivity and livelihood opportunities.
FAO + USA | Enhancing food security. Protecting global stability. Promoting trade.
04/2020
FAO and the United States of America (USA) have partnered closely over the past 75 years on efforts to end hunger and malnutrition around the world. The USA is the largest financial contributor to FAO's budget — with almost USD 527 million through assessed and voluntary contributions in the 2018–2019 period — and a key partner collaborating with FAO across the food and agriculture sector, from global crop forecasting and food safety, to disaster...
2019 State of Food and Agriculture: Moving forward on food loss and waste reduction
10/2019
This new edition of the report focuses on food losses and waste, providing new estimates of the world’s food post-harvest up to, but excluding, the retail level. Addressing policy makers, the report also offers a comprehensive analysis of the critical loss points in specific supply chains, thus providing examples on appropriate measures for an effective reduction.
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019
07/2019
An estimated 820 million people did not have enough to eat in 2018, up from 811 million in the previous year, which is the third year of increase in a row. This underscores the immense challenge of achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger by 2030, says a new edition of the annual The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report.
OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2019-2028
07/2019
The 15th joint edition of the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook provides market projections for major agricultural commodities, biofuels and fish. The 2019 report contains a special feature on the prospects and challenges of the agricultural sector in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The future of food safety
06/2019
This updated brochure presents FAO’s work on food safety, highlighting its critical role across the four dimensions of food security – availability, access, utilization, and stability.
Action Plan - Decade of Family Farming
05/2019
On May 29, FAO and IFAD launched the United Nations’ Decade of Family Farming and a Global Action Plan to boost support for family farmers, particularly in developing countries. The plan highlights the need to increase, among other things, family farmers’ access to social protection systems, finance, markets, training and income-generating opportunities.
Saving livelihoods saves lives 2018
05/2019
A summary of the achievements of FAO’s resilience and emergency programmes in 2018, including increasing food production inSouth Sudan through the provision of 4 800 tonnes of seeds, and enhancing livelihoods in Somalia through the rehabilitation of infrastructure.
Soil erosion: the greatest challenge for sustainable soil management
05/2019
Launched in conjunction with the Global Symposium on Soil Erosion (15−17 May 2019), this paper argues that there are three main levers available to increase adoption of soil control measures: enhanced extension leading to voluntary adoption; regulation coupled with effective enforcement, and economic incentives.
No Time To Wait: Securing the future from drug-resistant infections
04/2019
If no action is taken, drug-resistant diseases could cause 10 million deaths each year by 2050 and damage to the economy as catastrophic as the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, warns the UN Ad hoc Interagency Coordinating Group on Antimicrobial Resistance who released the report. By 2030, antimicrobial resistance could force up to 24 million people into extreme poverty.