World Food Day 2025: Nations Unite ‘hand In Hand’

This year’s World Food Day, marked today, October 16, carries a powerful message: “Hand successful Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future.”

The theme, chosen by nan Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), calls connected group everyplace to activity together successful reshaping really nan world produces, distributes and consumes food.

It’s a fitting twelvemonth for reflection, too. The FAO celebrates its 80th anniversary, marking 8 decades of activity to destruct hunger and build healthier, much sustainable agrifood systems.

FAO’s day successful Rome

The bosom of this year’s celebrations thumps successful Rome, wherever world leaders, scientists and activists person gathered for nan World Food Forum 2025, hosted astatine FAO headquarters. Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, and premier minister, Giorgia Meloni, joined Spain’s Queen Letizia and Pope Leo XIV for nan juncture – each emphasising shared work for a food-secure future.

It’s a symbolic milestone – not conscionable for FAO, but for nan 673 cardinal group still surviving pinch hunger, and for those battling obesity and nutrient discarded successful richer countries. The connection is elemental but profound: nan world nutrient strategy is retired of equilibrium and fixing it will return everyone’s hand.

Norway’s sportfishing landscape. Credit: NSC.

Norway’s seafood industry

Among nan galore world contributions to this year’s discussions, Norway’s seafood stands retired for reminding nan world that nan early of nutrient doesn’t dishonesty only connected land.

The Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) marked World Food Day by highlighting its long-term committedness to sustainable water management – a exemplary built connected science, collaboration and zero waste. Since nan precocious 1970s, Norway has led nan measurement successful managing its fisheries responsibly.

“Research-based knowledge and guidance are important for ensuring sustainable seafood management. Through this approach, nan Norwegian seafood manufacture must ever adhere to sustainable practices. I deliberation this tin make it easier to take food from patient stocks, which is simply a bully measurement to meet nan increasing user request for conscious consumption,” said Bjørn-Erik Stabell, nan NSC’s UK director.

New investigation shows existent progress. The country’s whitefish manufacture now uses 70 per cent of each residual earthy material. That intends almost thing goes to waste.

Additional investigation shows that astir half of consumers worldwide are consenting to salary much for sustainably originated seafood, suggesting that responsible sportfishing isn’t conscionable bully policy; it’s bully business.

Discussions connected World Food Day astir nan globe

In nan United States, nan FAO joined forces pinch Arizona State University and nan Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation for “Food is Medicine and Eating for Health” – an arena exploring nan nexus betwixt diet, wellness and sustainability.

Meanwhile, successful nan Netherlands, Breda University of Applied Sciences launched a three-year investigation project studying really infirmary canteens tin nudge group toward healthier, much sustainable meals.

And successful nan UK, Compassion successful World Farming published a striking study revealing that factory farming wastes much atom than households, nutrient service, and unit combined – astir 766 cardinal tonnes each year. The group argues that shifting distant from grain-fed animal farming could provender up to 2 cardinal much group annually.

Ukrainian grain

Food information besides remains profoundly tied to geopolitics. Despite astir 4 years of war, Ukraine continues to play a important domiciled arsenic 1 of nan world’s breadbaskets.

According to nan World Food Programme, Ukrainian atom fed 152 cardinal group past year, reaching susceptible regions specified arsenic Yemen and Ethiopia. Yet, export volumes fell by astir 40 per cent this September arsenic Russian strikes again targeted cardinal Black Sea ports.

FAO’s connection this twelvemonth is that consumers, too, person power. Choosing locally produced foods, wasting less, and supporting sustainable brands are each steps toward a fairer system. As FAO put it, “The choices we make each time style nan world we unrecorded in.”

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