When uncertainties are certain

In an increasingly volatile world, agrifood crises are often foreseeable – but only if decision-makers have access to the right information at the right time. Climate extremes, conflict, and financial pressures demand policy responses that are anticipatory rather than reactive.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is working to turn shared data and predictive tools into accessible decision-support systems that strengthen early warning and risk monitoring. By integrating climate, market and conflict data into actionable insights, FAO supports governments, communities and vulnerable households to anticipate shocks, plan ahead and take timely action before crises escalate.

“What we are trying to do is to bring global public goods that will allow poor people, people facing hunger, and governments to make better decisions – decisions that will help increase their resilience and, of course, minimize the income impacts they will face,” stressed Máximo Torero, FAO Chief Economist, in the first episode of The Work We Do, a new FAO podcast series.

Torero pointed to the Food Security Risk Intelligence and Early Warning Room as a groundbreaking initiative providing real-time monitoring and analysis of risks affecting food crises. Launched in 2025, the FAO Risk Monitor functions as a central hub to coordinate early detection, warning, and response to emerging threats, bridging the gap between anticipatory action and emergency response systems.

Watch the full episode, where Torero explores how agrifood systems, global markets, financing, and macroeconomic stability are deeply interconnected, and why food security is not only a humanitarian concern but a central pillar of economic and political resilience, promoting national security.