Preparation of The State of Food and Agriculture 2024 took place in tandem with that of the 2023 edition,1 with both reports built on the theme of the true cost of food. An advisory group representing all relevant technical units of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was formed, alongside a panel of external experts, to assist the research and writing team. The advisory group convened from 22 to 24 March 2023, both virtually and in Rome, to review the draft of the 2023 edition and outline the scope of the 2024 edition.
This report drew upon an extensive review of case studies on the hidden costs of agrifood systems. The identification of case studies relied on a two-step approach. The first step aimed to move the needle on true cost accounting (TCA) applications, especially in regions and countries not receiving as much attention. Through an open call for proposals on case studies from 6 to 27 October 2023 and in consultation with the FAO Regional Offices, FAO commissioned a total of seven studies as background papers for this report. Second, it gathered case studies through a call for submissions, entitled “How can the hidden costs and benefits of agrifood systems be effectively incorporated into decision-making for transformation?”, on the Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition between 5 December 2023 and 29 January 2024. This resulted in 70 responses.2 The platform also allowed for inputs through a pilot artificial intelligence-based interviewer application, which mimicked a key informant interview, following the steps of Chopra and Haaland (2023).3 The call for submissions also accepted case studies that look at two or more aspects of the hidden costs under environmental, social or health categories. Out of all the responses, a total of 28 case studies were assessed as relevant to feature in this report. Through these steps, FAO created an inventory of TCA case studies, incorporating additional examples identified by the research and writing team through literature review and those shared by the advisory group.a
The team presented the drafts of the first three chapters to the advisory group and panel of external experts in advance of a workshop held both virtually and in Rome from 3 to 5 April 2024. With guidance from the workshop, the report was revised and the final chapters completed. The revised draft was sent for comments to the management team of FAO’s Economic and Social Development stream, and to other FAO streams and the FAO Regional Offices for Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Near East and North Africa. Comments were incorporated in the final draft, which was reviewed by the Director of FAO’s Agrifood Economics and Policy Division, the FAO Chief Economist and the Office of the Director-General.
