What's New

The June edition of the FAO Monthly News Report on Grains was released yesterday, with coverage of the biggest weekly rally in wheat and corn prices in three years, the signing of a free trade agreement between China and Australia, and more .

This issue's linked reports include Climate Change and Food Systems: Global assessments and implications for food security and trade and El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO): Possible impact on agricultural production during the second half of 2015 .

In 2013, the G20 Leaders’ Declaration included a framework on food and nutrition security (FSN Framework). This Framework was designed to provide the basis for a long-term, integrated, and sustainable food systems approach to food security and nutrition, recognizing that action is needed both within and beyond the agricultural sector.

The Framework set out three priority objectives to integrate food security and nutrition efforts at the global level and within lower income countries. These objectives also include links to the G20’s focus on economic growth and job creation.

By: Kelly Jones and Alan de Brauw, IFPRI

While Africa south of the Sahara has seen impressive growth in agricultural trade in recent years, one in four people remains undernourished, making it the region with the highest prevalence (percentage of population) of hunger.

Value chains include all actors and activities from food production to consumption—“from farm to fork”—enabling complex food systems to be molded into a comprehensive, solution-oriented approach to improving nutrition security. While value-chain interventions have historically focused on increasing income for smallholders and other stakeholders along the chain, value chains can also play an important role in determining the availability, affordability, quality, and acceptability of nutritious foods.