International food commodity prices hold steady in December

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 161.7 points in December, compared to a revised level of 161.6 points in the previous month. The index averaged 168.4 points for the whole of 2018, some 3.5 percent lower than in 2017 and almost 27 percent below the high point reached in 2011.
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FAO and University of Chile will promote sustainable development in the agri-food sector

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the University of Chile will join efforts in the areas of research, training, and technology transfer.
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Sites in Iran, Morocco and Spain recognized as important for the world’s agricultural heritage

A traditional saffron cultivation system in Iran, an argan-based agro-pastoral system in Morocco, and an ancient olive trees system in Spain today won recognition from FAO as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS).
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New UN resolutions sharpen focus on plant health, food safety and pulses

The UN General Assembly approved three new resolutions creating these awareness-raising initiatives, focused on plant health, food safety and pulses.
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The Russian Federation donates $3million to boost food security and nutrition in Syria

The donation will enable FAO to support 60,000 vulnerable households in the area of Aleppo, who were severely impacted by the crisis, to restore their production capacity and improve their food security and nutrition.
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FAO hails landmark UN resolution that enshrines rights of peasants and rural workers

The Declaration, which the General Assembly adopted on 17 December 2018, aims to protect the rights of all rural populations including peasants, agricultural and rural workers and indigenous peoples, while also recognizing their contribution to sustainable development and biodiversity and the challenges they face.
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FAO and WFO to help farmers drive global agricultural agenda

The World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) and the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today reaffirmed their commitment to help farmers become the drivers of the global agricultural agenda.
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FAO urges to scale up response to climate change in agricultural sectors

The world must scale up the response to climate change, particularly in agricultural sectors, FAO Deputy Director-General Maria Helena Semedo said at the UN Climate Conference today. It will require investing in multi-sectoral policy design, implementation design, people, data, innovations and leadership.
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NASA and FAO launch next-generation geospatial tool

Seeing both forests and trees is about to get easier, thanks to a new open-access tool developed by NASA and FAO, with support from the Google Earth Engine Team and the US Government’s SilvaCarbon Program - allowing anyone to track land-use and landscape changes anywhere.
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Progress on food security and nutrition stagnates in Europe and Central Asia

More than 14 million adults, and some 4.7 million children in Europe and Central Asia suffer from severe food insecurity – as defined by the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) - the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said in a report released today.
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Unabated climate change will cause more conflict and hunger

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva today warned of increased conflict and hunger if climate change is left unabated. He made the remarks at the Nobel Peace Prize Forum 2018 panel discussion on how to solve the climate crisis, with 2007 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former US Vice-President Al Gore.
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New report raises hopes for Mediterranean and Black Sea fisheries

Although the main commercial fish species in the Mediterranean and Black Sea are still over-fished, pressure has reduced over the past years, raising hopes – for the first time - for the recovery of fish stocks, according to new FAO-GFCM report launched today.
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