This paper is the Report of the 25th Session of the Committee on Agriculture (COAG), held in Rome on 26-30 September 2016.
The Committee on Agriculture is one of FAO’s Governing Bodies providing overall policy and regulatory guidance on issues relating to agriculture, livestock, food safety, nutrition, rural development and natural resource management. Established in 1971, the Committee has over 100 Member Nations and generally meets every two years, but may hold additional sessions if needed.
L’agriculture familiale est de loin la forme d’agriculture la plus répandue au monde, tant dans les pays développés que dans les pays en développement. Elle représente la principale source d’emplois dans le monde. C’est bien plus qu’une simple modalité de production alimentaire. C’est un mode de vie.
World population is expected to surpass the 9 billion mark by 2050, and agriculture has to increase the production of nutritious food to meet the growing demand and ensure food security for all. It has to generate jobs, improve incomes and contribute to poverty eradication and rural economic growth. And it has a major role to play in the sustainable management of natural resources. Most of the increase in food production will have to take place in developing countries.
Sustainable Public Food Procurement (PFP) represents a key game changer for food systems transformation. It can influence both food consumption and food production patterns. It can deliver multiple social, economic and environmental benefits towards sustainable food systems for healthy diets.
This publication aims to contribute to the improved understanding, dissemination and use of PFP as a development tool in particular in the case of school meals programmes.