The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) marked World Food Day on 16 October under the theme "Innovate Today. Nourish Tomorrow.", with events in more than 150 countries and more than 50 languages, and a warning that too little of what science can do is reaching farmers.
"Innovation must serve people and improve lives," Director-General QU Dongyu said at the ceremony at FAO's headquarters in Rome. "Its true value lies in reaching the people who need it most, and when it is shared and scaled." He said the most effective solutions are developed with the farmers, fishers, pastoralists and rural communities who use them and are adapted to local conditions, with investment and partnerships behind them.
Qu presented two Awards for Achievement. One went to the Aerospace Information Research Institute of China for the CropWatch Cloud platform, which makes satellite crop monitoring available to countries worldwide. Led by Professor Bingfang Wu, it has been adopted by 32 countries, is built into FAO's Hand-in-Hand Geospatial Platform, and its CropWatch Bulletin reaches users in 170 countries.
The other went to Addis Fekadu Andeta of Arba Minch University in Ethiopia for innovations in processing enset, a staple crop: a microbial starter culture that sharply shortens fermentation time and mechanical tools that improve efficiency and cut post-harvest losses. Lucy Enset, the enterprise he founded, has opened new markets for smallholders, particularly women.
A statement from Pope Leo XIV called for a "new global food order", and Italy's agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida said innovation was the key to reconciling productivity, sustainability and resilience. FAO said innovation is changing how food is produced, stored, transported and marketed, and that turning it into impact at scale needs sustained investment. On the eve of the day, FAO honoured its 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and welcomed almost 1,000 children aged 9 to 13 to Junior World Food Day. The ceremony closed the World Food Forum week in Rome.
Source: FAONewsRoom
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