COVID-19 pandemic is a threat to global food security, warns FAO
Agriculture Ministers of the G20 countries are urged to consider the transformation of the food system and to encourage new business models based on e-commerce as a way to enhance local resilience and bolster direct links between producers and consumers. The recommendation comes from the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization Director-General, Qu Dongyu, who believes that the COVID-19 pandemic is a threat to global food security.
"Preserving access to safe food and nutrition is an essential part of the health response. We need to collaborate with every actor in the supply chain, build public-private partnerships and promote innovation," he said during the Extraordinary G20 Agriculture Ministers' Meeting on Food Security and Nutrition, while recommending countries to strengthen local production and shorten food supply chains.
Qu Dongyu urged G20 ministers to include long-term goals in their policy frameworks. "The crisis opens an opportunity to accelerate food system transformation. New business models are needed. It is the time to speed-up e-commerce in agriculture and food systems across the globe," he added.
Currently, the global outlook for animal protein is shaken by severe disruptions in supply chains from Australia, New Zealand to the US, and South America. As an example, global beef trade is expected to drop by 1% this year, while the pork market is already confronted with a deficit created by the African swine fever (ASF) crisis in Asia.
The Ministers of Agriculture of the G20 adopted a Ministerial Statement on COVID-19, which reaffirms "the importance of working to ensure the continued flow of food, products, and inputs essential for agricultural and food production across borders." The declaration also points out that G20 countries "will work together to help ensure that sufficient, safe, affordable, and nutritious food continues to be available and accessible to all people, including the poorest, the most vulnerable, and displaced people," informs FAO.
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