THE FBA SDNY CHAPTER UNITED NATIONS REPORTER SERIES
By Margaux D’Orlando-Dubois1
FBA UN Reporter
November 5, 2019
The United Nations (UN) observes World Food Day each year on October 16th . This year, by doing so, it called on all concerned citizens, members of the private sector, and leaders in civil society, as well as government officials, and organizational leaders, to reaffirm their commitment to the goal of ending hunger by focusing on supporting healthy diets.
During a related meeting on October 17th in New York, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, convened a panel of experts to discuss the alarming consequences of globalization, urbanization, and income growth on efforts to end hunger. They reported that over 670 million adults and 120 million girls and boys (5-19 years) are obese, and over 40 million children under five are overweight. Moreover, they reported that while UNICEF reports that 822 million people suffer from hunger in 2019, the number is rising as compared to 2017 when 812 million people were suffering from hunger. Obesity and poor nutrition affect nearly one in three people. Projections indicate that the number will rise to one in two by 2025. Of particular concern is the fact that women and children are the principal targets of food insecurity, which tends to be more prevalent in conflict zones. Alarmingly, malnutrition resulting from an unhealthy diet is related to one-fifth of deaths worldwide. An unhealthy diet remains the top risk factor for disease globally, specifically cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and certain cancers. Issues related to world hunger cost an estimated $2 trillion per year world-wide.
By way of background, in 1979, when the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization’s Member Countries created World Food Day, this body acknowledged that “food is a requisite for human survival and well-being and a fundamental human necessity. ” By September 2015, as H.E. Lazarous Kapambwethe, the UN permanent representative of Zambia to this body explained, the UN has defined the 2030 agenda for sustainable development which sets forth explicitly the goal of ending hunger, achieving food security, improving nutrition, and developing sustainable agriculture. He reminded the audience that, “ The idea is to nourish people and the planet to address hunger .” Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President of the 74th General Assembly, added to the discussion stating that the UN recognizes that one of its critical priorities is ” to produce enough food that is available, affordable and within reach of all .”
Nevertheless, today, while sufficient food to nourish the global population is produced, one-third of it is wasted as a result of unsustainable production. The group reported that actions must be taken to reorient the entire food system towards local agriculture and infrastructures that link producers and consumers. Such an organizational structure would be better for eradicating poverty, supporting a sustainable economy, and working toward supporting global nutrition needs. The UN permanent representative of Japan, H.E. Yasuhisa Kawamura, emphasized the role nutrition plays as an essential component of universal health coverage promotion and that this requires engagement by government, young people, civil societies, international organizations, academia, and the private sector.
A particular highlight of the program were the remarks provided by a panel of five women who recommended a call to action in the following manner:
- Ms. Nata Menabde, Executive Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) office at the UN, said that underlying the inequality behind access to food are threats to health, and the need for joint global action;
- Ms. Grace Ramirez, chef, author, TV personality, and activist highlighted the impact of individual behavior, and highlighted the need to act globally to change the food system by supporting farmers and local markets and the need to raise awareness regarding healthy nutrition for children;
- Ms. Amanda Merrow, of Amber Waves Farm on Long Island, advocated fighting climate change through the protection of farm lands from real estate investment threats, and the development of educational programs that promote the profession of farming;
- Ms. Marion Nestle, Professor of Nutrition, New York University, shared a new food system approach suggested by the two 2019 reports published in the scientific periodical the “Lancet,” which calls for a transformative social movement and the development of an agenda to deal with food-industry opposition; and
- Ms. Maria Helena Semedo, World Economic Forum and the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation, emphasized the need to foster collaboration between the actors and to foster political support, financial investment, and technological progress to achieve transformation of the food industry.
H.E. Lazarous Kapambwe, closed the session by challenging the UN to establish “ten common sense points” and concrete actions that can be taken to work toward achieving these goals, including supporting the development of a World Health Organization regulation on the amount of salt and sugar permitted in processed foods. He reported that since hunger and malnutrition are not acceptable in a world of such plenty, the food system must be refocused to end hunger and address obesity while promoting a healthy diet.
The group recognized that in order to achieve these ambitious goals for the 2030 Agenda, it is essential to establish a partnership between governments, the private sector, civil agencies, and other stakeholders. He noted that future meetings are already planned for 2020 at the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit, and for 2021 at the Food System Summit. He reiterated that the UN should focus its efforts on making nutrition the driver of sustainable development, and identified as part of a proposed “Decade of Action ” the goal of delivering a sustainable transformation of the food system.
1 Margaux D’Orlando-Dubois is an LLM Student studying International Dispute Resolution at Fordham Law School. She anticipates graduating in Spring, 2020.