The document summarizes discussions from a two-day event on food system transformation held alongside the SUN Global Gathering in Kathmandu, Nepal. On the first day, 14 farmers from several countries discussed challenges they face in producing nutritious food sustainably, including overuse of pesticides/fertilizers, water scarcity, and lack of youth interest in agriculture. They said farmers need fair prices, markets, and eco-friendly inputs from companies to contribute to solutions. The second day involved companies discussing how to work with farmers to address the issues, focusing on empowering women farmers through training and negotiating skills.
A prosperous and nutritionally secure drylands through demand-driven innovation ICRISAT
A prosperous and nutritionally secure drylands through demand-driven innovation
Presentation by ICRISAT Director General Dr. David Bergvinson at the CGIAR meeting in USA on 2 November 2015.
Thematic Presentation on "Family farming"Amit Yadav
Welcome to the Thematic Presentation on “Family Farming”. We the MSW II year student of School of Social Work Roshni Nilaya select this topic for thematic presentation because 2014 is The”International Year of Family Farming”. Through this presentation our focus is to inform about the family farming, importance of family farming, what is International Year of Family Farming, 2014, Objectives of family farming and so on.
Breaking the food-system divide with Smart Food - good for you, the planet an...ICRISAT
For decades the vast majority of investments have flowed to the ‘Big 3’ crops- Wheat, maize and rice. Whether it is R&D, private industry investment, policy support, product development, or even development aid, the Big 3 have received the lion’s share across the globe. This is a problem because it has led to crops being grown in inappropriate agroecologies.This can negatively impact on the natural resources, and increase risk for farmers.It is also well known that globally we need more diversity on-farm, we need more diversity in our diets and more nutritious diets.We have to change peoples’ habits of eating mainly one food such as rice. If we do not change habits then there are not going to be the changes in global diets that are needed, both nutritionally and environmentally and for farmers’ sakes. Therefore we have set up the Smart Food movement.
A prosperous and nutritionally secure drylands through demand-driven innovation ICRISAT
A prosperous and nutritionally secure drylands through demand-driven innovation
Presentation by ICRISAT Director General Dr. David Bergvinson at the CGIAR meeting in USA on 2 November 2015.
Thematic Presentation on "Family farming"Amit Yadav
Welcome to the Thematic Presentation on “Family Farming”. We the MSW II year student of School of Social Work Roshni Nilaya select this topic for thematic presentation because 2014 is The”International Year of Family Farming”. Through this presentation our focus is to inform about the family farming, importance of family farming, what is International Year of Family Farming, 2014, Objectives of family farming and so on.
Breaking the food-system divide with Smart Food - good for you, the planet an...ICRISAT
For decades the vast majority of investments have flowed to the ‘Big 3’ crops- Wheat, maize and rice. Whether it is R&D, private industry investment, policy support, product development, or even development aid, the Big 3 have received the lion’s share across the globe. This is a problem because it has led to crops being grown in inappropriate agroecologies.This can negatively impact on the natural resources, and increase risk for farmers.It is also well known that globally we need more diversity on-farm, we need more diversity in our diets and more nutritious diets.We have to change peoples’ habits of eating mainly one food such as rice. If we do not change habits then there are not going to be the changes in global diets that are needed, both nutritionally and environmentally and for farmers’ sakes. Therefore we have set up the Smart Food movement.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), food security is a situation when all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preference for an active and healthy life.
Linkages of Green Consumerism with Agrobiodiversity Conservation in Himalayan...Hasrat Arjjumend
In high altitudes of Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, about 45 traditional cultivars of 15 different crops of millets, pulses, beans, barley, pea, buckwheat, horse gram, maize, wheat, potato and soybean are better adapted to the local agro-climatic conditions in comparison to the HYVs. Abundance, sown area, cultivation history, yield, bio-physical characteristics, economics and agronomic practices were studied in 2007-10 followed by the characteristics of each cultivar such as size/color/taste of the seed/fruit/tuber, nutrition value, and resistance to pests/insects/pathogens/water stress. Participatory research with farmers revealed that agricultural biodiversity can longer be protected because of fast invasion of monoculture-based farming systems in mountains, which is indirectly linked with growing unsustainable consumerism. Analysis in context of consumer-commodity relationships indicated that the consumer preference of lucrative foods has led to absence of market for food grains, pulses, oilseeds and vegetables of traditional cultivars in most of low-altitude mountain areas. As a result the monoculture with chemical farming has succeeded and the farm diversity declined. Changing pattern in consumerism is believed to have affected negatively the farmers’ behaviour of growing the traditional cultivars of genetically-superior food crops. Can the green consumerism reverse the trend of erosion of agrobiodiversity, and provide the farmers with incentives of continuing to grow multiple crops with traditional varieties? Literature on green consumerism shows that there is a potential demand for products of traditional cultivars in new emergent economies including India, though the current food market is not responding to fully meet the needs and preferences of eco-friendly consumers. Product labeling, certification and quality control are some issues that diffuse the responsible consumers, thus causing setback to very market for products of traditional cultivars. This paper so recommends that by developing compulsory or voluntary labeling and certification to enhance information for potential green consumers about the products of traditional cultivars and by setting low-cost marketing channels to transfer premium price back to farmers could help farmers to sustain the adoption of traditional cultivars as against modern varieties. It would help conserve in situ the agrobiodiversity in Himalayan mountains, and to maintain resilience of agro-ecosystems for mitigation of the effects of climate change.
Dear All,
It contains plenty of useful and valuable information about urban farming and different hydroponic systems. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for more information.
Regards
Dr. Hamed Faghiri
Presented at the Pulses for Sustainable Agriculture and Human Health” on 31 May-1 June 2016 at NASC, New Delhi, India. The conference was jointly organised by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), TCi of Cornell University (TCi-CU) and Agriculture Today.
food waste has been one of the least discussed topics yet so devastating on the environment and human life as global warming and pollution
this ppt discusses the food waste valuation on the global and national context and some of the ways to keep it at bay!
The International Year of Family Farming was launched on the 22nd November at UN Headquarters in New York.
What is Family Farming?
Family farming includes all family-based agricultural activities, and it is linked to several areas of the rural development. Family farming is a means of organizing agricultural, forestry, fisheries, pastoral and aquaculture production which is managed and operated by a family and predominantly reliant on family labour, including both women’s and men’s.
Objectives of the International Year include supporting the development of policies conducive to sustainable family farming and increasing knowledge, communication and public awareness.
Dear All,
It contains plenty of useful and valuable information about the hydroponic system and urban farming. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for more information.
Regards
Dr. Hamed Faghiri
Leveraging vegetable seed companies for enhanced nutritional outcomes of popu...WorldFish
Presented by Dr. Ray-Yu Yang (AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center) and Mr. S. M. Abdul Mukit, (Lal Teer Seed) at the WorldFish Bangladesh Office on the 29th of August, 2013.
The seminar presented the concept and approach of the new project funded by the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health, A4NH.
This project intends to build upon the collaboration between AVRDC, CIP and WorldFish in the USAID Feed the Future funded project “Improving incomes, nutrition, and health in Bangladesh through potato, sweet potato, and vegetables” (USAID-Horticulture).
According to World Health Organization (WHO), food security is a situation when all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preference for an active and healthy life.
Linkages of Green Consumerism with Agrobiodiversity Conservation in Himalayan...Hasrat Arjjumend
In high altitudes of Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, about 45 traditional cultivars of 15 different crops of millets, pulses, beans, barley, pea, buckwheat, horse gram, maize, wheat, potato and soybean are better adapted to the local agro-climatic conditions in comparison to the HYVs. Abundance, sown area, cultivation history, yield, bio-physical characteristics, economics and agronomic practices were studied in 2007-10 followed by the characteristics of each cultivar such as size/color/taste of the seed/fruit/tuber, nutrition value, and resistance to pests/insects/pathogens/water stress. Participatory research with farmers revealed that agricultural biodiversity can longer be protected because of fast invasion of monoculture-based farming systems in mountains, which is indirectly linked with growing unsustainable consumerism. Analysis in context of consumer-commodity relationships indicated that the consumer preference of lucrative foods has led to absence of market for food grains, pulses, oilseeds and vegetables of traditional cultivars in most of low-altitude mountain areas. As a result the monoculture with chemical farming has succeeded and the farm diversity declined. Changing pattern in consumerism is believed to have affected negatively the farmers’ behaviour of growing the traditional cultivars of genetically-superior food crops. Can the green consumerism reverse the trend of erosion of agrobiodiversity, and provide the farmers with incentives of continuing to grow multiple crops with traditional varieties? Literature on green consumerism shows that there is a potential demand for products of traditional cultivars in new emergent economies including India, though the current food market is not responding to fully meet the needs and preferences of eco-friendly consumers. Product labeling, certification and quality control are some issues that diffuse the responsible consumers, thus causing setback to very market for products of traditional cultivars. This paper so recommends that by developing compulsory or voluntary labeling and certification to enhance information for potential green consumers about the products of traditional cultivars and by setting low-cost marketing channels to transfer premium price back to farmers could help farmers to sustain the adoption of traditional cultivars as against modern varieties. It would help conserve in situ the agrobiodiversity in Himalayan mountains, and to maintain resilience of agro-ecosystems for mitigation of the effects of climate change.
Dear All,
It contains plenty of useful and valuable information about urban farming and different hydroponic systems. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for more information.
Regards
Dr. Hamed Faghiri
Presented at the Pulses for Sustainable Agriculture and Human Health” on 31 May-1 June 2016 at NASC, New Delhi, India. The conference was jointly organised by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), TCi of Cornell University (TCi-CU) and Agriculture Today.
food waste has been one of the least discussed topics yet so devastating on the environment and human life as global warming and pollution
this ppt discusses the food waste valuation on the global and national context and some of the ways to keep it at bay!
The International Year of Family Farming was launched on the 22nd November at UN Headquarters in New York.
What is Family Farming?
Family farming includes all family-based agricultural activities, and it is linked to several areas of the rural development. Family farming is a means of organizing agricultural, forestry, fisheries, pastoral and aquaculture production which is managed and operated by a family and predominantly reliant on family labour, including both women’s and men’s.
Objectives of the International Year include supporting the development of policies conducive to sustainable family farming and increasing knowledge, communication and public awareness.
Dear All,
It contains plenty of useful and valuable information about the hydroponic system and urban farming. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for more information.
Regards
Dr. Hamed Faghiri
Leveraging vegetable seed companies for enhanced nutritional outcomes of popu...WorldFish
Presented by Dr. Ray-Yu Yang (AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center) and Mr. S. M. Abdul Mukit, (Lal Teer Seed) at the WorldFish Bangladesh Office on the 29th of August, 2013.
The seminar presented the concept and approach of the new project funded by the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health, A4NH.
This project intends to build upon the collaboration between AVRDC, CIP and WorldFish in the USAID Feed the Future funded project “Improving incomes, nutrition, and health in Bangladesh through potato, sweet potato, and vegetables” (USAID-Horticulture).
While small scale family farmers grow food, and produce 70% of the food in this region, we remain to be poorest, hungriest, mostmalnourished? Why ? First because many of us do not have adequate access , control or ownership of the basic natural resources needed to do farming: land, waters, forests, seeds. Without land rights, we cannot decide what to plant, when to plant, where to market the produce, and in many cases, get only a 30% share of the produce of the farm. Without water rights, the fishes we could have captured in our seas and waters are first captured by big commercial trawlers, leaving so little for the many of us who would like to fish. Without forestry rights, we lose our forests to big mining and logging companies. Without rights to breed, conserve, save and exchange seeds, we will be dependent on the seeds of big and multi-national seed companies..
Second, our yields are low, of inferior quality, and we do not have the money to buy necessary inputs such as seeds, fertilizers or even farm tools or put up needed services such as irrigation, electricity.
BIG IDEAS for partnerships in sustainable developmentICRISAT
ICRISAT has identified the biggest hurdles and opportunities critical for the
development of agriculture and agribusiness in the drylands.
The drylands cover 40% of the world’s land, where one-third of the people depend on agriculture and over 600 million of these people are among the poorest in the world. Climate change is also making the drylands a tougher environment to develop and survive.
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A farmers’ perspective on food system transformation
1. WBA Farmer Roundtables 2019
A farmers’ perspective on
food system transformation
Kathmandu, Nepal
7-8 November 2019
2. In 2015, all countries of the United Nations have agreed to 17
Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030
3. The World Benchmarking Alliance encourages companies to
contribute to sustainable development through benchmarking
4. The Access to Seeds Index encourages the seed industry to
improve access to quality seeds for smallholder farmers
SEN
Sedab
Tropicasem
MLI
Agriplus
Faso Kaba
SOPROSA NER
Ainoma
BFA
Nankosem
NAFASO
CIV
BILOHF
GHA
Heritage Seeds NGA
Maslaha Seeds
DA-Allgreen Seeds
Premier Seed
Value Seed
ZAF
Capstone Seeds
Hygrotech
Starke Ayres
Klein Karoo Africa
Seed Co
ZAM
Zamseed
KEN
Kenya Highland Seed
East African Seed
Kenya Seed Company
UGA
Equator Seed
NASECO
FICA Seeds
Victoria Seeds
SOM
Darusalam
Seed Company
ETH
Ethiopian Agricultural
Business Corporation
UAE
Advanta
IND
Acsen Hyveg
Namdhari Seeds
Bioseed
Kalash Seed
Mahyco
National Seeds Corporation
Nuziveedu Seeds
Metahelix Life Sciences
BGD
BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise
Lal Teer Seed
THA
East-West Seed
Charoen Pokphand
VNM
Vinaseed
TWN
Known-You Seed
KOR
Nongwoo Bio
CN
GAWAL
PAK
Punjab Seed
JPN
Sakata
Takii
CMR
Semagri
Eastern and
Southern Africa
South and
Southeast Asia
Access to Seeds
Index
Western and
Central Africa
The 62 companies in scope of
the Access to Seeds Index 2019
Global companies
from other regions:
NLD
Bejo
Enza Zaden
Rijk Zwaan
Pop Vriend Seeds
DEU
KWS
Bayer
FRA
Limagrain
Technisem
CHE
Syngenta
USA
Corteva Agriscience
Monsanto
1 East-West Seed
(THA-Private)
2 Bayer
(DEU-Listed)
3 Syngenta
(CHE-Private)
4 Advanta
(ARE-Listed)
5 Corteva Agriscience
(USA - Listed)
6 Acsen HyVeg
(IND-Private)
7 Namdhari Seeds
(IND-Private)
8 Limagrain
(FRA-Cooperative/Listed)
9 Nuziveedu Seeds
(IND-Private)
10 Monsanto
(USA-Listed)
11 BRAC Seed & Agro Enterprise
(BGD-Social Enterprise)
12 Metahelix Life Sciences Ltd
(IND-Listed)
13 Lal Teer Seed
(BGD-Listed)
14 Kalash Seed
(IND-Private)
15 Known-You Seed
(TWN-Private)
16 Vinaseed
(VNM-Listed)
Access to Seeds Index 2019
South and Southeast Asia
62 companies in scope of the
Access to Seeds Index
5. WBA Farmer Roundtables
Consulting farmers on tackling food and nutrition security
Eastern &
Southern Africa
Latin
America
Western &
Central Africa
South &
Southeast Asia
3
8
4
2
9
5
1
7
6
1. Addis Ababa
September 2013
2. Goma
July 2016
3. Hanoi
August 2016
4. Ouagadougou
October 2016
5. Johannesburg
November 2016
6. Aurangabad
March 2019
7. Dakar
April 2019
8. Kathmandu
November 2019
9. Nairobi
November 2019
Western &
Central Africa
Eastern &
Southern Africa
South &
Southeast Asia
Access
to Seeds
Food System
Transformation
6. Why do we need to transform the global food system?
Global hunger
800 million people go to
bed hungry every day
Malnutrition
2 billion people are
unhealthy because of
malnourishment
Climate change
Agriculture is source of
25% of emissions; yields
are expected to drop by
30%
Rural povery
75% of global poor are
farmers; female farmers
earn 30% less than male
farmers
Food loss and waste
30% of all food produced
is lost or wasted
Population growth
Food production needs
to increase by 70%
8. Three dimensions of food system
transformation
• Promote diverse diets
• Promote plant based protein
(legumes) over animals
• Increase intake fruit and
vegetables
• Reduce fats and sugars in
food
• Healthy alternatives
• Responsible marketing
• Reduce emissions
• Reduce land use
• Reduce water use
• Reduce fertilizer use
• Prevent biodiversity loss
• Protect soil health
• Promote agrobiodiversity
• Reduce food loss and waste
• Reduce packaging pollution
• Fair price for farmers
• Include smallholders in value
chains
• Protect rights of communities
(land rights, water rights)
• Eradicate child labor, forced
labor
• Promote gender equality
• Invest in rural infrastructure
Nutrition
Grow more healthy food
Environment
Reduce environmental impact
Social
Improve lives farmers, communities
9. What do you need from companies to contribute to food
system transformation?
• Seeds
• Agrichemicals
• Fertilizer
• Food traders
• Food processors
• Retailers
• Restaurants
Companies
that sell inputs
Companies
that buy produce
• Machinery
10. Pesticide use
• High fertilizer and pesticide use is bad for health of
farmers, consumers, environment
• How to reduce pesticide use when pressure of pests
and insects is increasing? (Indonesia)
Water availability
• Less rainfall and ground water levels are going
down (India)
• Poor water management limit availability of land for
agriculture (Bangladesh)
Consumer preferences
• Learn customers that eating nutritious food is
better than just filling your stomach
• ‘Toxic products’ are cheaper than organic crops
Who grows food in the future?
• Young people do not chose a career in agriculture
Challenges mentioned by farmers
Farmer education
• A lot of farmers lack education and training
• Farmers have learned bad agricultural practices in the past
Nutrition vs productivity
• Crops like mung bean and green bean are highly nutritious
but less productive
• More nutritious products do not automatically result in
higher income
International competition
• Difficult to compete with cheaper imported crops from
countries with higher productivity
Access to seeds
• Not enough seed production for local needs
High input costs
• Costs of seed, fertilizer and labor limit possibilities to
increase production
11. How can farmers contribute to these three
dimensions of food system transformation?
1. Increase the production and
consumption of traditional crops
2. Better price for organic and
nutritious crops compared to
unhealthy processed foods
3. Make it attractive for farmers to
move into the production of
nutritious food
4. Better standards for nutritious
food (like fair trade) that farmers
can follow and result in a better
price
1. Train farmers on better
agricultural practices
2. More R&D on quality seeds that
can reduce environmental
impact and grow resilience
3. Reduce the costs, improve price,
better markets for organic
products
4. Improve markets for fresh
products like vegetables to
prevent food loss and waste
1. More respect for farmers as
producers for nutritious food for
all
2. Work with farmers’
organizations to make
agriculture attractive for youth
3. Agree on fair minimum price /
price system with the industry
for agricultural products
4. Improve gender equality
Nutrition
Grow more healthy food
Environment
Reduce environmental impact
Social
Improve lives farmers, communities
12. Main outcomes of yesterday: how can farmers and
companies work together on this?
• Farmers can produce more
nutritious food but it has to
be profitable
• Good price
• Good markets
• Change consumer choice
• Farmer can reduce the
environmental impact but
they need
• Eco-friendly inputs
• Suitable machinery
• More training
• Food system transformation
only happens when farming is
attractive as a business
• Respect farmers as partner
• Interest youth
• Transparent & fair pricing
Nutrition
Grow more healthy food
Environment
Reduce environmental impact
Social
Improve lives farmers, communities
13. This week bought together over 1200 delegates and 70 nationalities from
governments, academia, civil society, private sector and others to
Kathmandu for the SUN Global Gathering. This flagship event, titled
“Nourishing people and planet together”, gave members and stakeholders
the opportunity to take stock, share innovations and map progress on the
fight against malnutrition worldwide.
The World Benchmarking Alliance, along with our local partners Agriterra
and NACCFL, were extremely proud to hold our own event alongside the
gathering, focusing on the broad issue of food system transformation –
producing more, and more nutritious, food while reducing environmental
impact and enhancing rural prosperity for farmers and their communities.
Our farmers roundtable bought together 14 farmers from six different
countries (Nepal, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, India and
Bangladesh) to give their perspective on this global agenda and the
challenges they face. Leading problems include the overuse of fertilizers
and pesticides and their impact on farmers, consumers and the
environment; water scarcity and poor water management; trade offs
between yields and productivity when cultivating more nutritious food;
declining youth interest and participation in agriculture; and access to a
higher variety of quality seeds and other agricultural inputs.
The farmers concluded that they need a number of actions from the private
(and public) sector in order for them to contribute to the change we need.
To produce more nutritious food, companies need to offer those who
produce it a fair price and better access to markers, in addition to
marketing these foods more effectively to consumers. Similarly, to reduce
their environmental impact farmers need eco-friendly inputs, suitable and
affordable machinery, and more training on good agricultural practices.
Crucially, food system transformation can only be achieved when farming is
presented as a viable and attractive livelihood opportunity, particularly for
young people. Respect for the farmer and greater cooperation between
farmer cooperatives and the private sector is key to this.
The second day of our event saw our 14 farmers joined by representatives
from the SUN Business Network, multinational companies and regional and
global small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), to discuss how they can
work together to tackle the challenges and issues raised on day 1. The most
popular solutions included greater need for female empowerment and
gender equality through capacity building – not just practical training but
also soft skills to allow them to negotiate with buyers, with the need for
education and training again linked to overall greater respect for farmers.
Nutrtionally, improved technology to avoid nutrient loss during processing
and greater availability of biofortified seed were highlighted.
Environmentally, the most important answers were more R&D for climate
resilient seed varieties, integrated agriculture and livestock farming to
improve the circularity of the ecosystem, and increased usage of
alternative sources of energy.
The outcomes of this event will be invaluable for the development of
WBA’s methologies and benchmarks in food and agriculture. We would like
to thank all of the farmers, partners, businesses, civil society and other
stakeholders for attending this very successful event and we hope to see
you again in the future.
Concluding statement