A number of United Nations (UN) members will require financing of up to $60,000/yr, if they are to continue transforming their food systems to meet key goals, the UN reports.
According to a UN synthesis report on dialogues around food systems transformations among member states, a number of “acute needs” must be met if the momentum of these transformations are to be maintained.
The report outlines that more than 36 countries urgently need finance to continue their development in line with their ‘national pathway document’, a document outlining the route to more sustainable systems.
Included in these are 12 small island nations in the Pacific region, three in the Indian Ocean and a number in the Carribbean. As well as this, a number of low-income countries are requesting funds between $25,000 and $60,000/yr to continue their processes.
The report explains the importance of countries continuing with their food systems transformations, as included within them are methods to combat challenges such as sustainability in agriculture, as well as ending hunger and poverty.
Each member state has developed their own national pathway document that outlines the most pressing themes to them, as well as an action plan on how to deal with them.
Within Europe, the top three themes in order of urgency were: Food loss and waste; Healthy diets from sustainable food systems; and Sustainable livestock.
105 of the 111 dialogues analysed for the report also marked ‘Climate and disaster resilience’ and ‘Resilient food supply chains’ as priority areas that need to be worked on within a number of food systems.
Food systems report
The synthesis report was formed as a follow-up to the Food Systems Summit held in September 2021 in New York, and analysed the dialogues that took place between the summit and March 2022.
The dialogues around food systems are intended to result in the development of ‘national pathways’, which represent a country’s route to achieving a vision for its food system. Ireland’s national pathway is Food Vision 2030.
Within the Food Vision 2030 plan are four overarching missions relating to the development of an environmentally sustainable agri-food sector, that produces safe and nutritious food.
The plan also outlines actions to achieve these goals, which align with the EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy as well as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.