المنتدى العالمي المعني بالأمن الغذائي والتغذية

Thanks for the opportunity to comment on the scope of the new HLPE study on Sustainable Forestry for Food Security and Nutrition. Forests are recognized as an integral part of national economies, providing a wide range of production inputs, environmental goods, food, fuel, medicines, household equipment, building material and raw materials for industrial processing. We would like to emphasize the interlinkages between forest biodiversity, human nutrition and health, furthermore, the vital role that forest play for water quality, and climate regulation.

The Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2) Rome Declaration on Nutrition recognized that ‘Current food systems are being increasingly challenged to provide adequate, safe, diversified and nutrient rich food for all that contribute to healthy diets due to, inter alia, constrains posed by resource scarcity and environmental degradation’ (Rome Declaration para 10), and ‘Food and agriculture systems, including forestry, need to be addressed comprehensively through coordinated public policies, taking into account the resources, investment, environment and people’ (Rome Declaration para 14. e).

The following recommendations from ICN2 Framework for Action are relevant in this context:

• Recommendation 9: Strengthen local food production and processing, especially by smallholder and family farmers, giving special attention to women’s empowerment, while recognizing that efficient and effective trade is key to achieving nutrition objectives
• Recommendation 10: Promote the diversification of crops including underutilized traditional crops, more production of fruits and vegetables, and appropriate production of animal-source products as needed, applying sustainable food production and natural resource management practices.

In the proposed outline of the new HLPE report, under point 1 regarding the role of forest for FSN, forests’ contribution to sustainable food environments and nutritious food should be included. FAO estimates that forests provide nutritious food such as wild plants, animals and tree foods for many people, and are important especially for rural diets. Forests also sustain resilience: forest products are often consumed more frequently in times of food scarcity and can provide livelihood safety nets. They are part of sustainable consumption and production patterns. The report should look at the nutritional values (macro- and micronutrients) of foods found in the forest and highlight their role in supporting nutritious and diverse diets within a sustainable food environment.

Forest biodiversity is important for human nutrition and health - The sustainable use of forest biodiversity can be instrumental in preserving existing food biodiversity, address micronutrient deficiencies and other forms of malnutrition, contribute to diversified diets, and mitigate adverse effects of dietary changes worldwide. In 2006, a nutrition initiative led by FAO was launched on the basis of a recognized linkage between biodiversity, food and nutrition, in order to enhance sustainable use of biodiversity to combat hunger and malnutrition (FAO, 2008, Expert Consultation). The report should discuss the impact of forests on dietary diversification, improving the nutritional status of populations and consequently helping to improve the quantity and quality of food intake.

Under point 2 regarding sustainable forests and forestry for FSN, in environmental, economic, and social dimensions – The role of forest to secure drinking water should be addressed. Forest can help protect water, soil and biological resources, and is important in maintaining sustainable agricultural and environmental systems. In terms of their function in regulating the water cycle, studies have shown that there is the potential for forested catchments to secure drinking water, especially for supplying urban drinking-water (FAO, 2008, forest and water).

Women play a key role in management of forests and FSN - At the International Conference on Forests for Food Security and Nutrition (FAO, 2013), one of the key messages stated that women often have specialized knowledge of forests and trees in terms of species diversity, uses for various purposes, and conservation and sustainable management practices, but the role of women in ensuring the food security and nutrition of forest-dependent communities is often underappreciated. Therefore, the report should address the key role of women in increasing household dietary diversity based on forest products and through marketing of such products.

Wood continues to be the primary fuel in most tropical countries and a significant fuel in many others. Therefore the report should also look at the linkage between fuel wood and nutrition. Shortage of fuel wood in resource poor settings and harsh climate conditions can affect household nutrition in multiple ways. Women may be forced to ration cooking times, leading to a decrease in household food consumption or meal frequency if fuel wood is limited, which in turn can affect the nutritional status of household members. Moreover, if fuel wood is scare, it may increase the incidence of illness resulting from improperly prepared food or contaminated water. Lastly, fuel wood scarcity can impact the time women spend searching and collecting fuel wood and therefore, have less time for other activities such as, income generation, child care and food preparation.  Fuel wood access must be included in food security and agricultural planning and policy, poor access to cooking fuel can mean that household resources (either time or money) are spent to procure fuel rather than healthy and nutritious food.

The report should also address the need to develop new metrics on sustainable management of natural resources. Furthermore it could look at forest in its contributions to Nutrition-Sensitive Landscapes (NSL) (UNSCN 2014: Towards Sustainable, Healthy and Profitable Food Systems: Nutrition and the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources).

And finally, regarding the different role of actors, the UN system certainly has an active role to play in support of national and regional policies. Examples are found in the United Nations development assistance framework (UNDAF) in Mongolia and in Turkmenistan how forest management regulations are integrated in the framework

For instance, in the UNDAF of Mongolia, 2007-2011, UN agencies supported to reducing forest depletion and land degradation throughout the UNDAF period and have set outcomes to reduce both forest depletion and land degradation. In the UNDAF of Turkmenistan, 2010-2015, it is stated that national stakeholders and local communities apply best practices on sustainable land and forest resource management, taking into account the global climate change context (UNDP,UNECE, FAO).

With best regards

The UNSCN Secretariat Team