The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019 – Safeguarding against economic slowdowns and downturns

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019 is an important measure of global progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger. It gives an updated estimate of the number of hungry people in the world, including regional and national breakdowns, and the latest data on child stunting and wasting as well as on adult and child obesity. The report also offers analysis of the drivers of hunger and malnutrition, and this year includes a special focus on the impact of economic slowdowns and downturns. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019 is presented by FAO with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Digital report | Full report | Flyer | In brief | E-Book MOBI/EPUB 

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Creating a Sustainable Food Future

By 2050, nearly 10 billion people will live on the planet. Can we produce enough food sustainably? World Resources Report: Creating a Sustainable Food Future shows that it is possible – but there is no silver bullet. This report offers a five-course menu of solutions to ensure we can feed everyone without increasing emissions, fueling deforestation or exacerbating poverty. Intensive research and modeling examining the nexus of the food system, economic development, and the environment show why each of the 22 items on the menu is important and quantifies how far each solution can get us.

WRI produced the report in partnership with the World Bank, UN Environment, UN Development Programme, and the French agricultural research agencies CIRAD and INRA.

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UNSCN Nutrition 44 – Food environments: Where people meet the food system

This year, the 44th edition of the UNSCN Nutrition (previously UNSCN News) – flagship publication of the UNSCN - explores the contexts in which consumers engage with the food system to make their decisions about acquiring, preparing and consuming food, and the impact of such food environment on their final dietary choices.

Food environments is a new concept and its relevance for a better understanding of food systems is still a matter of debate. Researchers have not yet reached a unique agreed-upon definition of food environments but they tend to converge towards a combination of external and personal factors eventually influencing people’s food choices, attitudes and habits. While food availability, prices, vendors, product properties, marketing and regulation design the food environment externally, a secure food environment also depends on personal aspects such as geographical access, affordability, convenience and desirability of food for the consumer. The food environment will influence the consumers’ dietary habits on the long-term and thus their nutritional and health status. It is thus imperative that food environments are shaped to meet the personal consumers’ needs.

Food environments are shaped by a myriad of factors: taxes and subsidies, marketing and advertisements, production and value chains etc. with their implications for consumer’s choices and the quality of diets.  What initiatives can increase consumer demand for healthy diets? What government policy and fiscal measures can positively influence what food is available to consumers and lead to healthier dietary choices?  What lessons are available from national and/or local interventions?

The 44th edition of the UNSCN Nutrition - Food environments: Where people meet the food system provides an overview of several food environment related issues through selected publications of authors from all stakeholder groups: government, academics, civil society, and the private sector.

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High-Level Political Forum 2019 – Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality

9-18 July 2019
UN HQ, New York 

The meeting of the high-level political forum on sustainable development in 2019 convened under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council, will be held from Tuesday, 9 July, to Thursday, 18 July 2019; including the three-day ministerial meeting of the forum (16-18 July 2019).

The theme will be "Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality". The set of goals to be reviewed in depth is the following:

  • Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
  • Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
  • Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
  • Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
  • Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
  • Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

For more information on Thematic SDG Reviews, click here.

In accordance with paragraph 84. of the 2030 Agenda, Member States have decided that the HLPF shall carry out regular voluntary reviews of the 2030 Agenda which will include developed and developing countries as well as relevant UN entities and other stakeholders. The reviews are state-led, involving ministerial and other relevant high-level participants, and provide a platform for partnerships, including through the participation of major groups and other relevant stakeholders.

In 2019, 51 countries (10 for the second time) have volunteered to present their national voluntary reviews to the HLPF. For more details, please click here.

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FAO Webinar – The evidence review: the key step in the development of FBDGs

09 July 2019
15:30 – 17:00 (GMT+2)

Register here 

A solid evidence base is a pre-requisite for food-based dietary guidelines (FBDGs) to be able to address country-specific nutrition needs while being socially, culturally and economically appropriate. With the increasing burden of overweight and obesity and other modern sustainable development challenges, the evidence base must thus reflect these evolving considerations. In addition, amidst increasing pressures from commercial interests and civil society/academia’s questioning of the integrity of dietary advice, maintaining transparency and high standards in the evidence review of FBDGs has become a critical issue.

However, with the exception of some countries, not much is known about the actual methods used and activities carried out during the FBDGs evidence review process.

This FAO webinar will tackle some of these gaps focusing on the following questions:

  • Why is the evidence review a key step in the development of FBDGs?
  • What are the main processes involved? What is the current FAO process for conducting an evidence review?
  • What are some challenges and responses in LMICs?

The webinar will also highlight two country cases and present FAO’s current work in this field.

Presenters:
Ana Islas and Ramani Wijesinha-Bettoni, Nutrition Officers, FAO
Joyce Kinabo, Professor, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania
Gabriela Rosero Mora, Coordinator of the FBDGs process, Ecuador

 

This is the second of a series of six webinars on FBDGs organized by the Nutrition Education and Consumer Awareness Team of FAO

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Agricultural output growth to keep food prices low over the coming decade, but many uncertainties are ahead

Global demand for agricultural products is projected to grow by 15 percent over the coming decade, while productivity growth is expected to keep inflation-adjusted prices of the major agricultural commodities to remain at or below current levels, according to the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook.
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Codex Alimentarius Commission: 08-12 July 2019

The United Nations food standards body Codex Alimentarius Commission is meeting in Geneva from 08 to 12 July 2019 to adopt food safety and quality standards.
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Green Climate Fund approves major FAO climate change resilience project in Pakistan

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has provided FAO with a grant of nearly $35 million for this work, while the provincial governments of Punjab and Sindh have committed an additional $12.7 million in co-financing to be managed by FAO.
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FAO Food Price Index steady in June

The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of commonly traded food commodities, averaged 173 points in June, down 0.3 percent from May.
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Protracted conflicts and adverse weather conditions exacerbate food needs

Some 41 countries, of which 31 are in Africa, continue to be in need of external assistance for food, according to the FAO's Crop Prospects and Food Situation report issued today.
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Food Governance Conference

3–5 July 2019
From 3 to 5 July 2019 the Sydney Law School and the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre will host the second Food Governance Conference in 2019.

Everybody eats; it is the key to our survival, but food also has the potential to compromise health. The global food system is challenged by issues of drought, climate change, trade, malnutrition, and exploited workers. Population growth and the forces of marketization have further compromised the ability of the food system to deliver safe, nutritious and sustainable food to the world's population.

The 2019 Food Governance Conference will explore how law, policy, and regulation address food system challenges or contribute to them at local, national, regional, and global levels. This includes issues such as food security, food safety, food sustainability, equity and social justice in global food systems, and nutrition: under/malnutrition, obesity, and noncommunicable disease.

While food-specific law and regulation will be a key focus of the Food Governance Conference, it will consider how broader legislative and policy regimes impede or facilitate access to a nutritious, equitable, and sustainable food supply, including economic, trade, and intellectual property regimes.

The conference takes a broad, interdisciplinary approach, in the hope of highlighting the interrelationships between the main challenges facing the global food system in the 21st century, and to create new opportunities for collaboration between researchers, policymakers and practitioners in the related fields of food safety, security, and sustainability, and diet-related health.

Opening public oration: Hilal Elver, UN Rapporteur on the Right to Food.

Conference details

Register for the conference here. 

Key dates

  • Abstract submission opens: 11 September 2018 - Submit your abstracts here. 
  • Abstract submission closes: 22 February 2019 
  • Notification to authors: 29 March 2019
  • Early bird registration closes: 3 May 2019
  • Closed workshops: 3 July 2019 (expressions of interest will be sought for running a workshop)
  • Opening public oration: 3 July 2019, 6-7.30pm
  • Main days of the conference: 4 July–5 July 2019
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Launch of the HLPE report “Agroecological and other innovative approaches for sustainable agriculture and food systems that enhance food security and nutrition”

Wednesday 3rd July, 14.00-17.00 (Rome time)
Green Room (FAO HQ)

Ambassador Mario Arvelo, Chair of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) and Dr Patrick Caron, Chairperson of its High-Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE) are proud to announce the launch of the 14th report of the HLPE on Agroecological and other innovative approaches for sustainable agriculture and food systems that enhance food security and nutrition.

The Summary and Recommendations are available in English to download here (All other UN official languages will be available on July 2nd 2019)

The event will be chaired by Ambassador Mario Arvelo, Chair of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS). An opening address will be made by FAO’s Agriculture and Consumer Protection Department (AG) Assistant Director-General, Bukar Tijani.

Next steps: the Report will be edited and made available on-line in English within the next few days after the launch. It will be released in all UN official languages six weeks before the opening of the next plenary session of the CFS.

 

The event will be webcast live at: http://www.fao.org/webcast/home/en/

The draft agenda of the event can be downloaded here

No registration is required; please contact the Secretariat at cfs-hlpe@fao.org if you need a building pass to attend the launch

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