FAO Knowledge Repository BETA

The FAO Knowledge Repository is FAO's official open repository, providing access to all of its publications. Through its open access policy, FAO seeks to increase the dissemination of its knowledge and to contribute to the scientific and technical impact of the Organization. 

 

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    Book (stand-alone)
    The future of food and agriculture: Trends and challenges 2017
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    What will be needed to realize the vision of a world free from hunger and malnutrition? After shedding light on the nature of the challenges that agriculture and food systems are facing now and throughout the 21st century, the study provides insights into what is at stake and what needs to be done. “Business as usual” is not an option. Major transformations in agricultural systems, rural economies, and natural resources management are necessary. The present study was undertaken for the quadrennial review of FAO’s strategic framework and for the preparation of the Organization Medium-Term plan 2018-2021.
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    Book (series)
    The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024
    Financing to end hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition in all its forms
    2024
    Six years from 2030, hunger and food insecurity trends are not yet moving in the right direction to end hunger and food insecurity (SDG Target 2.1) by 2030. The indicators of progress towards global nutrition targets similarly show that the world is not on track to eliminate all forms of malnutrition (SDG Target 2.2). Billions of people still lack access to nutritious, safe and sufficient food. Nevertheless, progress in many countries provides hope of the possibility of getting back on track towards hunger and malnutrition eradication. Implementing the policies, investments and legislation needed to revert the current trends of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition requires proper financing for food security and nutrition. Despite a broad agreement on the urgent need to increase financing for food security and nutrition, the same cannot be said for a common understanding regarding how this financing should be defined and tracked. The report provides a long-awaited definition of financing for food security and nutrition and guidance for its implementation. There are recommendations regarding the efficient use of innovative financing tools and reforms to the food security and nutrition financing architecture. Establishing a common definition of financing for food security and nutrition, and methods for its tracking, measurement and implementation, is an important first step towards sustainably increasing the financing flows needed to end hunger, food insecurity and all forms of malnutrition, and to ensure access to healthy diets for all, today and tomorrow.
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    Book (series)
    The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024
    Blue Transformation in action
    2024
    The 2024 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture features the Blue Transformation in action, illustrated by activities and initiatives, led by FAO in collaboration with Members, partners and key stakeholders, to integrate aquatic foods into global food security and sustainability, enhance policy advocacy, scientific research and capacity building, disseminate sustainable practices and technological innovations, and support community involvement. Part 1 of this edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture benefits from significant improvements in data collection, analytical and assessment tools and methodologies to present the most up-to-date review of world fisheries and aquaculture production and utilization. Part 2 highlights the role of FAO and its partners to catalyse the transformational changes required to support aquaculture expansion and intensification, effective management of global fisheries and upgrading of aquatic value chains. Part 3 covers the high-impact challenges and opportunities of the untapped potential of utilizing whole fish and by-products to improve food security and nutrition, expounds on the role of aquatic food systems in providing critical climate, biodiversity and environmentally sound solutions, and highlights the importance of their integration into national and multilateral processes. It also presents an outlook on future trends up to 2032 based on projections. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024 provides the most up-to-date and evidence-based information, supporting policy, scientific and technical insights on challenges, opportunities and innovations shaping the present and future of the sector, for the benefit of a wide and expanding audience of policymakers, managers, scientists, fishers, farmers, traders, civil society activists and consumers.
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    Document
    الجراد الصحراوي 2009
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    Book (stand-alone)
    Climate change and food security: risks and responses 2015
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    End hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition are at the heart of the sustainable development goals. The World has committed to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2030. But climate change is undermining the livelihoods and food security of the rural poor, who constitute almost 80 percent of the world’s poor. The effects of climate change on our ecosystems are already severe and widespread. Climate change brings a cascade of impacts from agroecosystems to livelihoods. Climate change impacts directly agroecosystems, which in turn has a potential impact on agricultural production, which drives economic and social impacts, which impact livelihoods. In other words, impacts translate from climate to the environment, to the productive sphere, to economic and social dimensions. Therefore, ensuring food security in the face of climate change is among the most daunting challenges facing humankind. Action is urgently needed now to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience of food systems to ensure food security and good nutrition for all.

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    Policy brief
    The food systems countdown report 2024
    Tracking progress and managing interactions
    2025
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    The Food Systems Countdown Initiative aims to monitor the state of food systems transformation through relevant data, independent of any established monitoring processes.Such monitoring can help align decision makers around key priorities, incentivize action, hold stakeholders accountable, sustain commitment by demonstrating progress, and enable course corrections.The Initiative is producing annual publications to measure, assess and track the performance of global food systems toward 2030 and the conclusion of the Sustainable Development Goals.This brief presents the Countdown indicators depicting the current state of national food systems. In doing so, it provides a starting point for future work to identify where things can be done better, provide ideas for how to get there, and inspire stakeholders (in particular, policymakers) that progress can and must be made.
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    Book (series)
    Compendium of food additive specifications
    Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, Ninety-ninth Meeting, Geneva,11–20 June 2024
    2025
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    This document contains food additive specification monographs, analytical methods, and other information prepared at the ninety-ninth meeting of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), which was held in Geneva from 11 to 20 June 2024. The specification monographs provide information on the identity and purity of food additives used directly in foods or in food production. The three main objectives of these specifications are to identify the food additive that has been subjected to testing for safety, to ensure that the additives are of the quality required for use in food or in processing and to reflect and encourage good manufacturing practice. This publication and other documents produced by JECFA contain information that is useful to all those who work with or are interested in food additives and their safe use in food.
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    Book (stand-alone)
    Monitoreo, evaluación y aprendizaje
    Generando evidencia sobre la resiliencia y sostenibilidad en el sector de frutas tropicales
    2025
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    Hay cada vez mayores requisitos y expectativas por parte de clientes, consumidores y gobiernos para que los actores de la industria de frutas tropicales demuestren cómo están contribuyendo a la sostenibilidad e informen sobre las acciones que están tomando para minimizar el impacto de sus operaciones en el medio ambiente y la sociedad. Sin embargo, existe poca orientación práctica para que los productores, las empresas y las organizaciones planifiquen y gestionen sistemas sólidos de monitoreo, evaluación y aprendizaje (MEL) de actividades que mejoren la resiliencia y la sostenibilidad de sus operaciones. Este documento técnico tiene como objetivo servir como punto de partida para cerrar esta brecha, apoyando a los actores de la industria de las frutas tropicales a desarrollar un sistema de MEL que esté orientado a generar evidencia sólida sobre la sostenibilidad y la resiliencia de sus operaciones. Esta guía ofrece apoyo para: definir los objetivos de resiliencia y sostenibilidad de las empresas y establecer una estrategia para alcanzarlos; realizar un seguimiento y medir el progreso hacia los objetivos de resiliencia y sostenibilidad de las empresas; identificar los logros y las áreas de mejora en las actividades y estrategias implementadas por las empresas, y la toma decisiones sobre cómo mejorar las operaciones con base en hechos sólidos.
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    Book (stand-alone)
    Saberes ancestrales en la agricultura familiar campesina con enfoque de género transformador
    Cuentos infantiles
    2025
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    La FAO, en el marco del Programa conjunto sobre enfoques de género transformadores para lograr la seguridad alimentaria, la mejora de la nutrición y la agricultura sostenible, apoyado por la Unión Europea, ha respaldado al Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería del Ecuador en la elaboración de seis cuentos infantiles sobre saberes ancestrales relacionados a la agricultura familiar campesina. Estos cuentos, con perspectiva de género, de manera que sirvan como faros de inspiración, iluminando caminos hacia una sociedad con igualdad de género y sistemas agroalimentarios más resilientes, con enfoques en la soberanía alimentaria y la mejora de la nutrición.Esta publicación se desarrolló combinando los saberes ancestrales identificados por el Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería en la agricultura familiar campesina del Ecuador con las normas sociales discriminatorias basadas en género diagnosticadas por el Programa conjunto sobre enfoques de género transformadores en favor de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición en este mismo grupo. En este sentido, el objetivo de esta publicación es transformar las perspectivas de género actuales y de futuras generaciones acerca de la distribución equitativa de las responsabilidades entre las mujeres y los hombres agricultores que se encargan de la producción y elaboración de alimentos y de las actividades domésticas y de cuidado del hogar, para no dejar a nadie atrás y promover el desarrollo sostenible de los sistemas agroalimentarios. Además, con esta publicación se busca preservar y visibilizar aquellos saberes y prácticas ancestrales relacionados con la alimentación y la agricultura que promueven la sostenibilidad ambiental y salvaguardan la salud y bienestar de todos y todas.
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    Booklet
    Antimicrobial prophylaxis in animals 2025
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    Antimicrobial prophylaxis in animals is a topic of increasing scrutiny. A general principle of antimicrobial stewardship is to avoid using antimicrobials in individuals that do not have a bacterial infection. However, appropriate prophylaxis that is applied in a targeted manner for high-risk situations where the risk of bacterial infection is great can reduce morbidity, mortality and welfare concerns. It can also potentially decrease overall antimicrobial use (AMU) if it prevents the need for therapeutic courses of antimicrobials, which may involve longer treatment courses and/or the use of higher tier antimicrobials. However, with large scale use, use that is poorly targeted, use that is not based on proper risk assessment and when antimicrobials are used in lieu of improvements in animal management and preventive medicine, the negative aspects of AMU (particularly on selection and spread of antimicrobial resistance) are more difficult to justify. Accordingly, efforts to assess, reduce and optimize prophylaxis are warranted, especially under the FAO global initiative of Reducing the Need for Antimicrobials on Farms for Sustainable Agrifood System Transformation (RENOFARM). However, a proper understanding of the complexity of antimicrobial prophylaxis is required to avoid misunderstanding and over-simplification of a complex issue, and diversion of attention from high impact areas.