Sustaining Food Production and Trade in Crisis Situations

My heart goes out to all the people caught up in conflict and to people around the world facing uncertainty.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict has underscored the urgent need to place agricultural productivity and trade on the global agenda. Supply chain and logistical disruptions, restrictions on exports, and shortages in inputs supply pose a serious threat to food security. Already, international food prices are volatile, having reached an all-time high in February 2022 (FAO). The uncertainty of the intensity and duration of the conflict will worsen the situation further as the disruptions and restrictions persist and will affect the entire globe.

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Gender Equality in Agriculture for Sustainable Food Systems in a Changing Climate

Today is International Women’s Day when women worldwide are celebrated yet many women continue to face gender inequality especially in the agricultural sector. According to the FAO, 80% of the farmland in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia is managed by small-holder farmers and about 2.5 billion people in poor countries are employed within the agricultural sector. Most of these are women. Women make up 43% of the agricultural workforce in the Global South and an estimated 66% of livestock keepers yet many of them do not have land ownership right nor access to resources. This is a challenge which threatens global food security and the sustainability of food systems especially in rural areas where more people suffer from hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Read More

Looking back on 2021

After a challenging 2020 filled with lockdowns and cancellations of in-person meetings as well as travel restrictions, we looked forward to a better year in 2021 and we were not disappointed! As we adjusted to a new normal filled with hybrid meetings or new travel requirements, we also welcomed all the exciting projects, conferences and achievements. Here are a few highlights: Read More

World Food Prize Borlaug Dialogue 2021: Nutrition-Sensitive Food Systems Roundtable

One of my highlights of the past year was 2021 Borlaug Dialogue Roundtable on Nutrition-Sensitive Food Systems organised by Barbara Stinson’s team at the World Food Prize Foundation. I had the privilege of moderating a discussion between experts, farmers, and past World Food Prize winners on how to achieve better nutrition globally. It is key to improve access to and affordability of healthier foods, including fruits and vegetables, pulses, dairy, and blue foods.

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Climbing the summit

The conversation about food has taken on a whole new meaning thanks to the UN Food Systems Summit. Food has always played a key role in our lives: from bringing family and friends together, to providing a source of income to millions of people, to shaping national and international policy. The importance of food can never be overstated. However, the discussion on food has usually been quite narrow and limited. Until recently, the idea of food only pointed to what we eat. The Summit has expanded the traditional idea of food to include the whole life cycle of getting what we eat from farm to table. Read More