Earth Today | ‘People over profit’
UN boss urges fix for broken food systems
Published:Thursday | July 27, 2023 | 12:09 AM
UNITED NATIONS (UN) Secretary General António Guterres has made a case for renewed investments in food systems that serve both people and the planet.
In delivering his statement at the opening of the Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment earlier this week in Rome, he suggested that the value of such a pursuit is clear.
“Global food systems are broken — and billions of people are paying the price. More than 780 million people are going hungry, while nearly one-third of all food produced is lost or wasted. More than three billion cannot afford healthy diets; two billion are overweight or obese; 462 million are underweight. And without access to financing and debt relief, developing countries are struggling to invest in food systems that can reach all people with the nutrition they need to live healthy lives,” he said.
“Meanwhile, unsustainable food production, packaging and consumption are feeding the climate crisis, generating one-third of all greenhouse gas emissions, using 70 per cent of the world’s fresh water, and driving biodiversity loss on an epic scale,” Guterres added.
The UN boss is, however, encouraged by the efforts of some countries, following on the first Food Systems Summit held in 2021.
“Over 100 countries have submitted voluntary progress reports on food systems transformation. Countries are taking decisive steps to reflect this priority in national and sub-national laws, policies and programming. We’re seeing more data being generated to shape policies, programmes and investments. And we’re seeing more partnerships among governments, businesses, civil society and UN agencies — including through the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub,” he noted.
Still, Guterres said “rescuing the Sustainable Development Goals means going much further” and time is a challenge. He has, therefore, promoted urgent action in some key areas, including “a massive investment in sustainable, equitable and resilient food systems”.
“It’s no surprise that chronic hunger is increasing in those regions with the weakest and most underfunded food systems — western Asia, the Caribbean, and across all regions in Africa. The State of Food Security and Nutrition report released two weeks ago also found that one in five people in Africa is going hungry — more than twice the global average. Starving food systems of investment means, quite literally, starving people,” he explained.
“I urge governments to respond to our call for an SDG Stimulus to scale up affordable, long-term financing for all countries in need, by at least $500 billion a year. This will help countries make meaningful progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 2 to achieve zero hunger, and build systems that can ensure people have access to affordable, nutritious food wherever they live. We also need greater investments in adaptation and resilient food, health, water, sanitation and agriculture systems that can withstand shocks, as well as early warning systems,” Guterres added.
He also championed collaboration between governments and businesses.
“Governments and businesses must work together to build systems that put people over profit,” he said.
“I call on governments and the food, agricultural, transportation and retail industries to explore new ways to lower the cost and increase the geographic availability of fresh, healthy food for all people. This also means keeping food markets open and removing trade barriers and export restrictions. And it means leveraging science and technology to improve the efficiency and reach of food systems,” he added.
Transforming food systems, Guterres maintained, requires all hands on deck.
“Let’s transform food systems for the future, and ensure that every person, in every community and country, has access to the safe and nutritious food they need and deserve. Let’s not forget, for developing countries to be able to achieve these goals, it is absolutely essential to massively scale up debt relief and guarantee long-term investments for those countries to be able to overcome …,” he added.