Agroecology Knowledge Hub

Diversity: diversification is key to agroecological transitions to ensure food security and nutrition while conserving, protecting and enhancing natural resources

Agroecological systems are highly diverse. From a biological perspective, agroecological systems optimize the diversity of species and genetic resources in different ways. For example, agroforestry systems organize crops, shrubs, livestock and trees of different heights and shapes at different levels or strata, increasing vertical diversity. Intercropping combines complementary species to increase spatial diversity. Crop rotations, often including legumes, increase temporal diversity. Crop–livestock systems rely on the diversity of local breeds adapted to specific environments. In the aquatic world, traditional fish polyculture farming, Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) or rotational crop-fish systems follow the same principles to maximising diversity.

Increasing biodiversity contributes to a range of production, socio-economic, nutrition and environmental benefits. By planning and managing diversity, agroecological approaches enhance the provisioning of ecosystem services, including pollination and soil health, upon which agricultural production depends. Diversification can increase productivity and resource-use efficiency by optimizing biomass and water harvesting.

Agroecological diversification also strengthens ecological and socio-economic resilience, including by creating new market opportunities. For example, crop and animal diversity reduces the risk of failure in the face of climate change. Mixed grazing by different species of ruminants reduces health risks from parasitism, while diverse local species or breeds have greater abilities to survive, produce and maintain reproduction levels in harsh environments. In turn, having a variety of income sources from differentiated and new markets, including diverse products, local food processing and agritourism, helps to stabilize household incomes.

Consuming a diverse range of cereals, pulses, fruits, vegetables and animal-source products contributes to improved nutritional outcomes. Moreover, the genetic diversity of different varieties, breeds and species is important in contributing macronutrients, micronutrients and other bioactive compounds to human diets. For example, in Micronesia, reintroducing an underutilized traditional variety of orange-fleshed banana with 50 times more beta-carotene than the widely available commercial white-fleshed banana proved instrumental in improving health and nutrition.

At the global level, three cereal crops provide close to 50 percent of all calories consumed, while the genetic diversity of crops, livestock, aquatic animals and trees continues to be rapidly lost. Agroecology can help reverse these trends by managing and conserving agro-biodiversity, and responding to the increasing demand for a diversity of products that are eco-friendly. One such example is ‘fish-friendly’ rice produced from irrigated, rainfed and deepwater rice ecosystems, which values the diversity of aquatic species and their importance for rural livelihoods.

Database

FAO and Civil Society Organizations are presenting the Webinar ''An introduction to the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation (TAPE): Metrics for Sustainable Food and Agriculture'' on 12 and 15 November 2021. FAO in dialogue with Civil Society Organisations and academia developed a global analytical framework for the multidimensional assessment of the performance...
Event
2021
02/12/2021 | 14:00 –15:30 CET Organic and agroecological fruits and vegetable growers provide excellent examples of how is possible to produce in a sustainable way, protecting the environment, growing biodiversity, preserving the soil and mitigating and adapting to climate change.  Organic and agroecological producers build sustainable and inclusive value chains that contribute...
Event
2021
FAO has recently partnered with the organization IN SITU to measure the impact of agroecology through the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation (TAPE) in 60 farms surrounding Rosario City in the State of Santa Fe, Argentina. The results of that assessment and their connection to public policies for territorial development will...
Argentina
Event
2021
In many parts of the world, beekeeping or apiculture is a widespread activity, with thousands of small-scale beekeepers depending on bees for their livelihoods. With the support of Apimondia, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), the Apicultural Science Association of China (ASAC) and the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Lazio e Toscana...
Event
2022
23 and 24 February 2022  | 13:00 –17:30 CEST Pollination is a fundamental ecosystem service for plant reproduction, agricultural production and the maintenance of terrestrial biodiversity. Almost 90 per cent of the world’s flowering plants are pollinated by insects and other animals, and it is estimated that about one-third of the global food...
Event
2022