The occurrence and intensity of disaster events is increasing and is expected to worsen as a warming planet faces up to the challenges of an uncertain risk landscape in the context of finite biological and ecological resources. According to the EM DAT database of the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), the frequency of disaster events has increased from 100 per year in the 1970s to around 400 events per year worldwide in the past 20 years.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is launching this new flagship report on “The impact of disasters on agriculture and food security”, as part of its ongoing commitment to promote a more inclusive, resilient and sustainable future for agriculture. Building on three prior publications by FAO on this topic, this report aims to organize and disseminate available knowledge on the impact of disasters on agriculture with a view to promote evidence-based investment in disaster risk reduction.