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World Food Day is
celebrated on 16 October every year to commemorate the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The theme of this year’s World Food Day is to
accelerate transformation towards
MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agri-food systems for
Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life,
leaving no one behind.
World Food Day has never been more critical.
More
than 3 billion people – almost 40 percent of the world’s population
– cannot afford a healthy diet.
There is even greater urgency to change how we produce and consume our food and to build more resilient, inclusive and robust food systems that create a difference to lives and livelihoods.
We have seen how the impacts of climate shocks, conflict and the COVID-19 pandemic have disrupted millions of lives and livelihoods,
while humanitarian emergencies in 55 countries including Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Haiti, South Sudan and other hotspots have caused upheaval and worsened global food security.
World Food Day is a call to action. On Friday
October 15,
on the eve of World Food Day 2021, the FAO
Director-General, QU Dongyu,
together with the heads of the other Rome-based UN agencies, Gilbert
F. Houngbo, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
and
David M. Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), will
officially launch this year’s celebrations with a hybrid event to be held in Rome.
The ceremony will feature special messages from
Pope Francis,
UN Secretary-General António Guterres
and Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
Professor Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the World Economic Forum,
will also present a virtual lecture with a Q&A and in the afternoon a panel of speakers will hold a
Dialogue
on Tea and Coffee
to explore the history and the production methods behind these beverages and how they unite different cultures.
Everyone can get involved. Events will be held in
150 countries around the world
to mark World Food Day, making it one of the most celebrated international days of the year and it will also be featured at
Expo Dubai
with activities and events calling for global solidarity in rethinking and reshaping our food systems.
For a second year in a row, we celebrate our
Food Heroes
through
a multi-platform campaign that recognizes the farmers, producers and others who provide food to their communities - helping to grow, nourish and sustain our world.
Take Action
Help us give World Food Day the visibility it deserves, by: following the global celebrations on 15 October; requesting interviews with FAO experts; and making the most of our communications resources.
Register to watch the ceremony (11:00-12:00
CEST) and the lecture (12.00-13.00 CEST)
here.
Resources
Message from FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu:
“This year’s World Food Day finds us at a critical moment.
The COVID-19 pandemic remains a global challenge, causing untold losses and hardship. The impacts of the climate crisis are all around us. Countless lives have been thrown into turmoil. Our thoughts are
with the people in Afghanistan, Haiti, and many other humanitarian emergencies.
Global food security challenges have not been this severe for years. Yet in the past year we have also witnessed the resilience and power within all of us.
Last month’s
UN Food Systems Summit
convened by the Secretary General, António Guterres, outlined how the world needs to move forward to transform agri-food systems. The
World
Food Forum, convened in Rome by the youth at FAO and our sister agencies, focused on harnessing the creativity and resilience of our younger generations.
Our new Strategic Framework 2022-2031,
endorsed by FAO’s 194 Members, supports the 2030 Agenda through transformation to more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agri-food systems, for Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life.
FAO estimates that as much as $40 to $50 billion in annual investments on targeted interventions are needed to end hunger by 2030. There are plenty
of low-cost, high-impact projects that can help hundreds of millions of people better meet their food needs.
This World Food Day calls on us to “walk the talk.” As producers, distributors or consumers, we each have the power to make a positive impact
on the transformation.”
FAO experts can answer a range of questions, including:
- Why are our agri-food systems out of balance?
- How has COVID-19 impacted food security and agri-food systems and how can we respond?
- How do agri-food systems contribute to climate change?
- How can we build more inclusive and efficient agri-food systems that will strengthen resilience?
- What impact does food loss and waste have?
Topics that can be explored with FAO experts include: healthy diets and nutrition, food loss and waste, biodiversity, climate change, production and trade of food commodities, digital innovation in agriculture.
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LIVE WEBCAST
The event will be webcast live
here
World Food Day Ceremony & Lecture
Dialogue on Tea and Coffee
Register to watch the ceremony
(11:00-12:00
CEST) and lecture
(12.00-13.00
CEST)
here.
WORLD FOOD DAY RESOURCES
World Food Day
World Food Day Ceremony
World Food Day Global Events
World Food Day at Expo Dubai
VIDEO
World Food Day
What are Agri-Food Systems?
We can all become Food Heroes
Director-General’s Message
Media Vault Video
RADIO
World Food Day PSA
SOCIAL MEDIA
Trello Board
OTHER MATERIALS
Tips for WFD action
WFD Activity Book
FOLLOW ON TWITTER
#WorldFoodDay
#FoodHeroes
MEDIA CONTACTS
Josephine McKenna
+39 06 5705 3523
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FAO Newsroom
+39 06 570 53625
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