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This is the first in a series of briefs drawing attention to the mutually reinforcing nature of four global normative instruments developed through CFS and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable SmallScale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines). Their synergistic implementation can make a difference in enabling small-scale fisheries to contribute to sustainable food systems by providing highly nutritious food for local communities, and it can make a difference for consumers in national, regional and international markets. The four CFS instruments with direct links to the SSF [...]

Both the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) and the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines) share the common overarching goals of achieving food security for all, eradicating poverty, sustainable livelihoods and environmental protection and supporting the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food security. This brief is part of a series drawing attention to the mutually reinforcing nature of four global normative instruments developed through the [...]

Small-scale fisheries communities in coastal areas or close to freshwater bodies are often highly vulnerable to a range of hazards (climate change, etc.) beyond their control. Frequent social, economic and political marginalization makes small-scale fisheries communities particularly susceptible to being affected by protracted crises. Two international instruments provide guidance on how to better address these issues: the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable SmallScale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines) and the The Committee on World Food Security Framework for Action for Food Security and Nutrition in Protracted Crises (CFS-FFA). The brief gives and overview [...]

Both the CFS Voluntary Guidelines to Support the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security (Right to Food Guidelines) and the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines) hold the realization of the right to adequate food as their main objective. The Right to Food Guidelines emphasizes the role of small-scale producers in several sections and the SSF Guidelines as their first objective call “to enhance the contribution to fisheries to food security and nutrition and support the realization to the [...]

Digital technologies have a high potential to enable further development of the agricultural sector, significantly reshape food value chains (FVCs), and greatly contribute towards more productive, resilient and transparent food systems. This paper provides a non-technical overview of digital technologies that have a high potential to revolutionize the agriculture and food industry, and contribute towards inclusion of small farmers into FVCs. The particular focus is on digital platforms providing e-commerce services and distributed ledger technologies (DLTs), such as blockchain, as they mutually enable more efficient and more inclusive local and global agricultural markets by tackling their contribution to reducing information asymmetries, [...]

With the global population approaching 8 billion, the role of agricultural value chains (VCs) is increasingly important in ensuring sustainable and equitable food production. However, in developing countries, market failures can prevent small farmers from fully participating in domestic and global value chains, and issues related to climate change create further challenges. Moreover, greening policies and actions, as well as concerns regarding nutritional outcomes, add complexity to providing nutritious high-quality food to feed a growing population. In this context, it is critical to examine how markets can be shaped to be pro-poor and to reduce negative social and environmental externalities.The [...]

The COVID-19 pandemic is jeopardizing human health and disrupting the food systems that are the foundations of health. Unless we take immediate action, we could face a global food emergency of severity and scale unseen for more than half a century.FAO is calling for USD 1.2 billion in initial investments to finance FAO’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Programme that aims to provide an agile and coordinated global response to ensure nutritious food for all both during and after the pandemic.The COVID-19 Response and Recovery Programme enables donors to leverage the Organization’s convening power, real-time data, early warning systems and technical expertise to direct support where and when it is [...]

The publication provides a description of the establishments that function to supply food to the population, in seven countries of the region. This analysis includes supermarkets, retail markets, wholesalers, restaurants and public companies in the food sector. It includes some general reflections, based on the cases analyzed, with a focus on measures that must be taken for their best performance in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.Last updated date 7/10/2020 Click here for more COVID19-related resources

The document presents the definitions and components of the food system, as well as proposing a definition and search areas for food phenomena. It also updates the empirical evidence and the opinion of experts based on how these eating phenomena are defined in the literature. Finally, it presents a reflection on the identified phenomena, how they are presented and should be addressed in the Latin American and Caribbean region, in the current COVID-19 scenario. Some of the phenomena mentioned are: food deserts and swamps, eCommerce and regulatory standards for critical ingredients in food. See more publications on COVID19 here.

The Tanganyika province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is among the most affected by food insecurity and malnutrition and some of its territories are in Emergency (IPC Phase 4). In addition to conflict, food insecurity is caused by a decline in agricultural production due to fall armyworm (particularly in maize-growing areas), floods and insufficient rains, and limited access to land and inputs. Intercommunal rivalries between the Bantu and the Twa—sparked in 2014 during a struggle over natural resources—have worsened since 2016. Resulting armed conflicts have wiped out the few remaining social infrastructures, leading to a climate of terror [...]