Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), oldest permanent specialized agency of the United Nations, established in October 1945 with the objective of eliminating hunger and improving nutrition and standards of living by increasing agricultural productivity.
The FAO coordinates the efforts of governments and technical agencies in programs for developing agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and land and water resources. It also carries out research; provides technical assistance on projects in individual countries; operates educational programs through seminars and training centres; maintains information and support services, including keeping statistics on world production, trade, and consumption of agricultural commodities; and publishes a number of periodicals, yearbooks, and research bulletins.
Headquartered in Rome, Italy, the FAO maintains offices throughout the world. The organization, which has more than 180 members, is governed by the biennial FAO conference, in which each member country, as well as the European Union, is represented. The conference elects a 49-member Council, which serves as its executive organ. In the late 20th century the FAO gradually became more decentralized, with about half its personnel working in field offices.
During the 1960s the FAO concentrated on programs for the development of high-yield strains of grain, the elimination of protein deficiencies, the provision of rural employment, and the promotion of agricultural exports. In 1969 the organization published An Indicative World Plan for Agricultural Development, which analyzed the main problems in world agriculture and suggested strategies for solving them. The 1974 World Food Conference, held in Rome during a period of food shortages in the southern Sahara, prompted the FAO to promote programs relating to world food security, including helping small farmers implement low-cost projects to enhance productivity. In the 1980s and ’90s, FAO programs for sustainable agriculture and rural development emphasized strategies that were economically feasible, environmentally sound, and technologically appropriate to the skill level of the host country.
global food securityA farm manager tends crops at an urban community farm in Quezon City, Philippines. The government-subsidized urban farm is intended to help mitigate hunger by making vegetables and seeds available to community members for their own food consumption or to grow their own food to sell for profit.
global food security, the availability of and access to resources in sufficient quantities to achieve adequate nutrition for the world population. According to the United NationsFood and Agriculture Organization, in 2022 some 2.4 billion people—about 29.6 percent of the world population—experienced moderate to severe limitations in access to food. Such widespread food insecurity is linked to various factors, especially conflict, local and national economic decline, poorly performing agricultural markets, and increased rates of inequality and poverty.
Components of food security
Ensuring food security requires fulfillment of multiple aspects of food production, including availability, access, utilization, and stability. Availability of food is closely linked to the global food supply, which is influenced by both planned factors and unexpected events, ranging from sanctions and trade restrictions to outbreaks of foodborne illness, natural disasters, and wars. Countries with secure economies are better equipped to withstand interruptions in food supply without marked increases in food insecurity.
Sufficient availability of food, however, does not necessarily ensure widespread access or fair allotment; an individual’s ability to access food depends on physical and economical factors. Moreover, the utilization of food can vary widely, particularly in the way that food is prepared and distributed and in the way that the human body utilizes nutrients. Stability of these components over time is critical—food insecurity often occurs episodically and is triggered by an event such as crop failure.
Recent declines in food security
The Global Food Security Index reviews the affordability, availability, sustainability, and quality and safety of food annually in more than 100 countries. Countries with consistently high ratings of food security include Finland, France, and Sweden. In the early 2020s, after nearly a decade of mostly positive increases, food security ratings fell worldwide. Countries in Africa and Asia are disproportionately affected by food shortages, owing to high levels of poverty, harsh climatic conditions, inequality, high population growth, and weak national economies.
Declines in global food security in the 2020s were attributed in particular to the economic impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which began in 2020. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 worsened the global food crisis as well, by disrupting agricultural supplies and causing significant increases in the price of wheat, corn (maize), fuel, and fertilizer. Other threats to food security include world population growth, drought, and the volatility of inflation and food prices. By 2023 most of the world was experiencing significant increases in inflation and trade restrictions. Some countries attempted to regulate prices domestically to control inflation but in the process inadvertently worsened the global food market. Increases in natural disasters and extreme weather events and the effects of armed conflicts compounded food shortages.
Strategies to improve food security
Bringing back Indigenous foods with Chef Sean ShermanUsing Native ingredients means cooking without dairy, wheat flour, and sugar.
Food security can be improved in part by focusing on sustainable agriculture, which can help mitigate effects of climate change, because of its emphasis on diversity in agricultural planning. Sustainable food systems are better able to withstand fluctuations in climate and disruptions to the supply chain than traditional agricultural approaches can. The incorporation of permaculture, such as using trees as windbreaks or firebreaks and planting many different varieties of plant species, can also help safeguard yields.
Other ways to increase global food security involve promoting food safety measures and reducing food waste and losses, especially post-harvest losses—about one-third of food produced globally is wasted after harvesting. Post-harvest loss is primarily a problem in developed countries, where many consumers are not interested in purchasing cosmetically imperfect produce.
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There also have been efforts to expand consumer interest in and access to less-conventional protein sources, such as insects. Cricket flour, for example, is considered a useful source of protein and has anti-inflammatory effects. Insects can be raised and harvested sustainably, with very little environmental impact.
Additionally, supporting governmental policies that address the root causes of poverty and make food more affordable and accessible for vulnerable households can also reduce food insecurity. In about half of U.S. states, the value of food assistance funds is doubled when it is spent on produce at farmers markets and farm stands; such programs have the added benefit of supporting farmers’ incomes while helping to meet consumers’ nutritional needs.
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