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Diverse foods derived from livestock production systems, including grazing and pastoralist systems, and from the hunting of wild animals, provide high-quality proteins, important fatty acids and various vitamins and minerals – contributing to healthy diets for improved nutrition and health. Livestock species are adapted to a wide range of environments, including areas that are unsuitable for crop production. Globally, more than a billion people depend on livestock value chains for their livelihoods. Small-scale livestock farmers and pastoralists make up a large proportion of livestock producers. Well integrated livestock production increases the resilience of small-scale farming systems. Livestock also provide other important [...]

The analysis presented in this report examines the impacts of repurposing food and agricultural fiscal support and border support on the cost and affordability of healthy diets and several other key socioeconomic, nutritional and climate indicators. The impacts are estimated at the global level, as well as for various income groups and geographic regions. Scenarios include repurposing fiscal support to producer support targeted to high-priority foods (those where current levels of consumption are below that of recommended levels) and to consumer subsidies targeting high-priority foods.

Regional Overview present the regional food security and nutrition situation, including trends of undernourishment, food insecurity and all forms of malnutrition, together with other indicators that could help the understanding of the causes of hunger and malnutrition. This edition offers a regional overview of the socioeconomic state of the region; national and regional data and trends regarding the costs and affordability of healthy diets; the possible drivers behind the high cost of healthy diets and their unaffordability; and introduces policies and investments around the region that aim to reduce the cost of nutritious foods and improve the affordability of healthy [...]

This document aims to provide guidance for government officials in: Defining surveillance objectives Establishing ASF-related case definition and reporting criteria Providing examples of potential ASF surveillance methods Identifying various crucial factors in consideration of a surveillance system Evaluating a surveillance system Since its incursion to Asia and the Pacific region, African swine fever (ASF) has shown impacts on food security and economics as the virus is expanding towards more areas and countries in the region. As the disease continues to expand into new territories, preparedness and control activities need to be constantly adjusted to adapt to situations observed in the field that may be contrary to [...]

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has jeopardized the stability of agrifood systems and the welfare of the rural households that are actively engaged in the different components of these systems, particularly in developing countries. Efforts are underway to redress the negative impacts of the pandemic through investments to ‘build back better’. These efforts represent an enormous opportunity to make significant and lasting contribution to the longer-term resilience and sustainability of agrifood systems in the context of climate change. The objective of this report is to provide an overview of the current opportunities for harnessing short-term response and recovery efforts to address longer-term [...]

Zoonotic diseases are transmitted between animals and people and impact health, livelihood and national and global health security. A multisectoral, One Health approach is necessary to address such complex heath threats at the human-animal-environment interface. Establishment of a multisectoral, One Health coordination mechanism allows countries to coordinate addressing zoonotic diseases and other shared health concerns at the human-animal-environment interface, including both leadership and technical functions, to strengthen and develop collaboration, communication, and coordination across the sectors and achieve better health outcomes. The Multisectoral Coordination Mechanism Operational Tool (MCM OT) provides a standard stepwise approach for countries to establish or strengthen a mechanism [...]

Hazards may occur suddenly (sudden-onset) or develop over time (slow-onset) and threaten people’s lives and livelihoods and all the pillars of sustainable development. Since 2016, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has supported extensive country-level work on Anticipatory Action for several slow-onset hazards such as drought, cold waves, pests and diseases, Rift Valley fever and the secondary consequences of COVID-19.This paper summarizes FAO's conceptual and programmatic approach for anticipating and mitigating the impact of slow-onset hazards on the most vulnerable people depending on agriculture for their livelihoods and food security. Drawing on FAO’s experiences in implementing [...]

In today’s world, the risk of spread of animal health diseases, within a country or across borders, is on the rise. Contributing factors include growing animal populations, increased movement of humans and animals, market intensification and global trade. Animal health services around the world play an essential role in curbing animal disease spread. They do so by increasing their capacity to manage animal health emergencies, preparing for such events during “peacetime” and reflecting on lessons learned during the “reconstruction phase”. These actions look to enhance a country’s state of operational readiness ahead of future events.Carrying out an After Action Review [...]

The COVID-19 crisis is exacerbating food insecurity and malnutrition in the Pacific region as measures to halt the spread of the virus have had unintended impacts on people’s lives, such as rising unemployment and poverty. Moreover, lockdowns and mobility restrictions cause disruptions in trade within and between States, reducing the availability and accessibility of adequate food, and threatening the sustainability of agrifood systems.Urgent steps are needed to address food insecurity for the poorest and most marginalized. Measures aimed at providing immediate support to satisfy people’s dietary needs should be put in place, including the provision of food and nutrition assistance.See [...]

An important part of FAO’s work involves the development and uptake of assessment tools that can help improve understanding of the characteristics, dynamics and constraints of food systems.Recent efforts have focused on supporting national and subnational governments and food system stakeholders in urban settings.Numerous tools, methodologies and guiding principles are available in the broad technical areas of food supply chains, cityregion food systems and value chains, to assess the contribution of food systems for the eradication of hunger.However, there is a dearth of resources that place primary focus on navigating food systems for outcomes related to nutrition – in particular, [...]