Healthy diet for all: FAO conducts a youth event in Moscow as part of the World Food Forum

On 15 October 2024, the FAO Liaison Office with the Russian Federation held its first event Healthy Food for All: Market Trends Impacting Diets for Youth in Russia at the UN House in Moscow as part of the World Food Forum (WFF).

Anna Benoit, Assistant Communication Specialist at the FAO Office, talked about the goals and history of the WFF creation, “The Forum created in 2021 on the initiative of FAO Director-General Dr Qu Dongyu consists of three segments: the Global Youth Action, the Science and Innovation Forum, and Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum. The goal of the WFF is to galvanize action, innovation and investment with youth engagement to improve the future state of food for all,” she emphasized.

Eduard Porvatov, Specialist on National Partnerships at the FAO Office, noted that on 16 October the Organization turns 79. “It is for a good reason that the World Food Day (WFD) coincides with the birthday of FAO. The Right to Food, this year’s WFD theme, is one of the fundamental human rights and its implementation is essential for building a sustainable future.”

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Ludmila Alexandrova, Senior Correspondent for the Economics Department of the Moskovsky Komsomolets Daily Newspaper, proceeded to moderate the meeting.

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Oleg Kobiakov, FAO Office Director, spoke about the main initiatives and transformations of the Organization proposed and implemented by FAO Director-General Dr Qu Dongyu, including the Youth Committee and the Women’s Committee. He urged young people to actively engage in the Organization’s projects and events, since only through joint efforts and innovative approaches can we get closer to achieving SDG 2, “The Moscow Office is always welcoming and interested in initiatives of future specialists, and we are convinced that today’s youth fan club of FAO is a talent pool of the future innovative agricultural sector.”

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Vladimir Kuznetsov, Director of the UN Information Centre in Moscow, also welcomed the audience, conveying a message from UN Secretary-General António Guterres, “On this day, we remind ourselves of the 733 million people who are short of food. At the same time, a zero-hunger world is possible. The 2021 Food Systems Summit set us on a course to tackle the inefficiencies and inequities built into our food systems.” “Food systems need a massive transformation to become more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable. This matter is closely related to several SDGs, including sustainable development, financing for development, and security. Russia supports the UN Secretary-General in his efforts to draw attention to the problems of hunger, but also highlights the fact that it is possible to solve them,” he added.

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Moderator Ludmila Alexandrova then asked Elena Yurasova, Coordinator for Non-Communicable Diseases of WHO in Russia, “How is ensuring the human right to access safe and nutritious food (the right of everyone to be free from hunger) related to issues of health and development? What is the role of youth in making and implementing decisions affecting their life and health?”

Elena Yurasova emphasized the importance of nutrition for public health and development and drew attention to the role of young people and civil society in ensuring healthy diets for all. “Youth play a key role in promoting a healthy lifestyle, acting as leaders, advocates and future health actors. They participate in the work of WHO through the Youth Council and various working groups, including the group on non-communicable diseases that deals with such new challenges as digital food marketing. Young doctors, volunteers and scientists in Russia are also crucial in making the right nutritional decisions and their application in practice.”

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Heads and experts from social and educational organizations in Russia talked about healthy diets with a focus on youth.

Dmitriy Pekurovskiy, Chairman of the All-Russian Youth Public Organization “Russian Union of Rural Youth”, outlined the potential of local products and the actions taken to promote them. “Russia has successfully dealt with the problem of hunger with a significant contribution from our agricultural workers. There is a federal task to create 18 thousand agro-technological classes by 2030, which involves interaction with the business and educational institutions. This will help engage children in the agricultural chain and lay the foundation for healthy diets.

In the Civic Chamber, we discuss nutrition-related issues. Local producers are not sufficiently involved in this system due to excessive requirements and lack of awareness. It has been proposed to develop a concept for providing schoolchildren with local products, establish quotas for their purchase, and create guidelines and regional programmes to increase the share of local products in school meals. It is also important to organize information events for parents and students regarding healthy diets using local products.”

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Olga Panova, President of the “Health of Our Children” Union, Head of the School Milk programme in Russia, stressed the importance of healthy diets and the need of being conscious about food. She highlighted the main project of the organization, the School Milk programme, which is already operating in 18 regions of Russia. The Pokolenie Za educational platform holds events to promote healthy eating in schools. The platform currently reaches almost 60 thousand schoolchildren. The organization also conducts all-Russian exams on healthy diets and product eco-friendliness.

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Irina Tyutkova, Professor at the State University of Education, spoke in detail about health-saving technologies in educational activities. “In recent years, many information portals and committees dedicated to the matters of school meals and healthy diets have been created in Russia. There is no separate field regarding healthy diets in the educational system. It is important to create a discipline that forms the healthy lifestyle mindset so that students could consciously choose healthy products and avoid bad habits.” She noted the need to take into account regional aspects and promote farm products, since young people are interested in such new nutrition trends as molecular nutrition, barista courses and additive technologies, including the creation of 3D food printers. According to her, these approaches can engage schoolchildren and help develop their interest in healthy diets.

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Valentina Yankovskaya, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor of the Department of Quality Management and Commodity Science of Products, Russian State Agrarian University – Moscow Timiryazev Agricultural Academy, talked about new approaches in the process of creating healthy foods for young people. “The Russian Federation has a system of legal regulation of food safety and quality. It is based on the results of scientific research that takes into account the wishes of consumers. For instance, the Timiryazev Academy created a world-class scientific centre conducting research on the design of food products for various population groups, including youth. The experiment demonstrated the possibility of producing products that can be perceived as a source of useful substances, while remaining tasty and nutritious,” she summed up.

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The topic of healthy diets was highlighted from the perspective of a large retailer, a family farm and a non-profit project.

Esmira Bayramova, Head of Brand Management for Private Labels at PJSC Magnit Retail Chain, talked about the large retailer’s role in healthy diets. “To improve consumer health, a retailer can use simple tools: more detailed labeling of calories and PFC (proteins, fats and carbohydrates) on products, expanding the range of dietary foods and vegetables and popular slow-cooking dishes. It is also important to promote healthy diets through advertising and investments in “green marketing”. It is worth noting that the fruit and vegetable market plays a key role in promoting healthy diets. Magnit is aimed at making these products accessible to consumers. The company has substantial production facilities, including its own greenhouse complexes and land for growing root crops. In addition, it actively promotes the use of vegetables and mushrooms in the daily diet through bloggers, especially those with children, to make the information more accessible and convincing to a wider audience.”

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Nikita Rossov, farmer and entrepreneur from the Irkutsk region, SDG 2 Youth Envoy in Russia, spoke about implementation of agritourism projects to involve young people in the consumption of natural foods. He told the audience how his business developed from an idea to the creation of a farm, as well as his plans for the future. “Last year, we had more than 2 000 adult tourists, and this year, thanks to school programmes, have already received about 800 children. How does agritourism influence the consumption of natural foods? We unobtrusively tell people about the benefits of proper nutrition and how farm cheese differs from regular cheese products. Thus, we improve the loyalty of regular consumers of our products. Next year, we are planning to construct a large building for animals. The new building will have milking simulators, and we will invite schoolchildren to simulate the life of a farmer and work in agriculture.”

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Elizaveta Churshukova, Head of the Food for Thought project, noted an increased demand for plant-based food among young people. She highlighted the challenges and prospects faced by the area. “The rise in popularity of plant-based diet is driven by four main factors: health, environmental sustainability, ethics, and the desire to follow popular trends. The plant-based diet benefits both human health and the environment, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and water pollution. However, high cost and lack of variety, especially in regions where such foods are difficult to encounter, remain one of the main barriers to the spread of plant-based diets.” She also said that the project is aimed at introducing well-balanced plant-based diets to university cafeterias, where process charts are provided free of charge and master classes are held.

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The speakers paid special attention to innovation, sustainable development and interdisciplinary cooperation, reflecting WFF goals of empowering youth to drive positive changes in the agrifood sector. The discussion at the UN House brought together young people, experts and leaders of the industry.

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About the World Food Forum

The World Food Forum (WFF) was first conducted in 2021 by the FAO Youth Committee, as an independent network of partners. With the support of FAO, it has become the main global platform to actively shape agrifood systems for a better food future, accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Within this framework, WFF Global Youth Action was created, which acts as a catalyst and driver of youth engagement in food development agenda and serves as a knowledge centre and innovation lab. In 2024, the Global Youth Action of the World Food Forum (WFF), a youth movement and network to transform our agrifood systems, takes place under the theme “Good food for all, for today and tomorrow”.

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