المنتدى العالمي المعني بالأمن الغذائي والتغذية

Organized in the context of the International Year of Pulses 2016, this webinar hosted the FAO experts Teodardo Calles and Fernanda Grande who presented the benefits of pulses from an agro-ecological and nutritional perspective. The presentations of the two experts were followed by a question and answer session which allowed participants to engage in a brief round of discussion.

تعد البقول من المحاصيل الغذائية المهمة التي تلعب دوراً محورياً في حل مشكلة الأمن الغذائي العالمي وفي مواجهة التحديات البيئية، فضلا عن دخولها في النظم الغذائية الصحية. واعترافاً بمساهمة البقول في صحة البشر وسلامة البيئة، أعلنت الجمعية العامة للأمم المتحدة عام 2016 سنة دولية للبقول. 

The next few decades will witness a rapidly increasing demand for agricultural products. This growing demand needs to be met largely through intensification (produce more from the same land surface) because there is little scope for an increase in agricultural area. Ecological intensification - the optimization of all provisioning, regulating and supporting ecosystem services in the agricultural production process - has been proposed as a promising solution. The aim of this discussion is to foster a dialogue on emerging knowledge from research on ecological intensification.

In many countries, agricultural development has traditionally focused on raising productivity and maximizing production of cereals, making it difficult for people to access foods that are richer in protein and minerals, such as milk, meat, fish, eggs, beans, vegetables, and fruits, which are often more expensive than cereals. The lack of nutrition training of agricultural workers is acknowledged globally as a significant barrier to combating malnutrition through agriculture and food systems.

Honeybees provide a wide range of benefits to humans from honey, other bee products, pollination of food crops and ecological services. Beekeeping is practiced around the world, and can provide a valuable source of income to people in developing regions with relatively little investment. However, apiculture faces a number of challenges that can impact on the health and survival of the colony. What can we do to create sustainable conditions for agriculture and apiculture to coexist and to benefit from each other?