Transforming Agri-food Systems with Fore

Q. Why is this in News?

A. Recently, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations released a report on deforestation, livestock grazing and farmer field schools.

• FAO released the report at FAO-Global Landscapes Forum digital forum Transforming agrifood systems with forests.
• A Farmer Field School brings together a group of farmers, livestock herders or fisherfolk, to learn how to shift towards more sustainable production practices, by better understanding complex agro-ecosystems and by enhancing ecosystem services.

Q. What are the Highlights of the Report?
A. 

• Food demand to support the global population will be 50% more in 2050 compared with 2012.
• Production will need 165 to 600 million more hectares of land for crop and livestock production, much of which is currently covered by forests and other critical ecosystems.
• From 2000-2018, almost 90% of deforestation globally was attributable to agricultural expansion.
  • This negatively impacts associated ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and biodiversity.
• The world has lost 420 million hectares of forests in the last two decades, as per FAO’s Global Forest Resources Assessment 2022.
• Forests are vital to slow the rate of deforestation, which stood at 11 million ha per year from 2000-2010.

Q. What are the Recommendations?

A. 

• 'Forest Positive’ Food Production:
  • The need of the hour is to build sustainable global agrifood systems based on the synergies between agriculture and forests that provide a win-win outcome for both sectors.
  • Governments need to create conditions for farmers to change their practices to maximise production while minimising the impact on forests and biodiversity.
  • Governments need to pay special attention to smallholder farmers, who produce roughly 35% of the world’s food, but often live in poverty and cannot afford the costs or interruptions to income incurred through changing the way they work.
• Restoring Degraded Land:
  • Properly integrated grazing can play a vital role in restoring degraded land with trees, halting desertification and improving wildfire prevention in drylands.
    • Drylands are home to about 25% of the global population, contain 50% of the world’s livestock, 27% of the world’s forests and are where about 60% of the world’s food production takes place.
  • Silvopastrolism (combining animal grazing and trees) can also help enhance local communities food security and income by preventing land degradation.
  • Woody plants in drylands provide animal feed, timber and fruit as well as help to increase biodiversity and regulate soil and water cycles.
  • At the same time, grazing livestock helps control vegetation, reduce the risk of wildfires, accelerate nutrient cycles and improve soil fertility.
• Part of the Solution:
  • As part of an integrated landscape approach utilizing agroforestry, landscape planners and decision-makers should consider livestock as part of the solution and carefully restore open tree cover (when tree cover is between 30 and 70%).

Q. What is FAO?
A. 

• About:
  • FAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.
  • World Food Day is celebrated every year on 16th October to mark the anniversary of the founding of the FAO in 1945.
  • It is one of the UN food aid organisations based in Rome (Italy). Its sister bodies are the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
• Initiatives Taken:
  • Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS).
  • Monitors the Desert Locust situation throughout the world.
  • The Codex Alimentarius Commission or CAC is the body responsible for all matters regarding the implementation of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme.
  • The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

Q. What are the Flagship Publications?

A. 

• The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA)
• The State of the World's Forests (SOFO)
• The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI)
• The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA)
• The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO)
• World Food Price Index