INRAE at the UN Food Systems Summit

Zero hunger, sustainable consumption and production, clean water – seven years remain to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN 2030 agenda. The sustainability of food systems is considered a major lever for achieving several of these goals.

Looking back at the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit

The UN Food Systems Summit (Food Systems Summit: FSS) aims to raise global awareness and work together to change the way we think about, produce and consume food.  It brings together key players from the worlds of science, business and politics, with scientists, farmers, consumers, environmental activists and all key stakeholders. The FSS is a people's summit and a summit of innovative and bold solutions to combat the burden of malnutrition (hunger, micronutrient deficiencies, excess weight and obesity) and to protect the environment and the climate. The  first UN Summit on food systems  was held in 2021 and saw the launch of a number of coalitions aiming to gather organisations around an integrated, systemic approach at scale to food systems issues. INRAE participates to two coalitions, on agroecology and school meals. Our scientists are involved with its' research and innovation group and our research contribute to several of the Action Tracks defined at the Summit.

Action coalitions

The Summit explored action tracks targets and launched a coalition hub for a number of action coalitions launched during the summit.  The priority is to catalyse the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by supporting national pathways for food systems transformation by 2030.

Agenda

The 2021 UN Food Systems Summit (FSS) is an ongoing international reflection process, with key milestones: 

 July 2023

  • The UN Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment takes place in Rome, Italy from 24 – 26 July 2023, INRAE is part of the French delegation. More info

September 2021

  • UN Food Systems Summit in New York and launch of action coalitions

July 2021

 

    INRAE's research aligned with the action tracks

    Ensure food security for all: impacts global changes on world food security

    From 2014 to 2020, INRAE and CIRAD co-led the GloFoodS interdisciplinary metaprogramme to shed light on the different dimensions of world food security in relation to global change. This unique programme, involving international partners and bringing together a wide range of disciplines and approaches, has produced concrete results that are available to stakeholders in the field and decision-makers.

    Shifting consumption patterns by simplifying labelling

    The Nutri-Score is a non-mandatory labelling system that summarises the nutritional profile of foods based on their ingredients (sugar, fat, protein, etc.). In 2020, a study conducted with more than 500 participants, in which INRAE took part, confirmed the usefulness of the system in guiding consumers towards more nutritional food choices.

    Boost nature-positive food production without chemical pesticides

    For more than two years, over 144 experts investigated possible ways to eliminate pesticides from agriculture on a European scale for the “European Pesticide-Free Agriculture in 2050” foresight study. The study explored three scenarios to promote changes in the agricultural and food system. It used measured impacts for each scenario and gave possible pathways forward for the European and regional transition of the entire food system.

    Advance equitable livelihoods with global innovation for local food systems

    The FAO and INRAE have published a bilingual Innovator’s Handbook in French and English entitled Enabling Sustainable Food Systems. The result of seven years of research and collaborative actions in over 20 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America, this guide includes experiences with local food systems and the behaviour of actors in the field.

    Build resilience with One Health

    The One Health approach arose with the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases, a phenomena exacerbated by globalisation. It follows a simple guiding principle: to protect the health of human populations, it is essential to preserve the health of animal populations and ecosystems. Coming from a broad array of fields, researchers at INRAE are collaborating to generate knowledge and inform decision-making by stakeholders on matters of public health. Interdisciplinary projects have now become the norm.

    Targeting food aid more efficiently

    Researchers from INRAE and the American University of Beirut developed an original methodology, combining individual and large-scale community aggregate data by the United Nations, to reduce the misallocation of food aid to populations in situations of insecurity or poverty such as refugees.

    Science as a basis for reflection

    The design and implementation of the Summit is supported throughout the process by several bodies including a scientific panel of 29 independent experts. Jean-François Soussana, INRAE's Vice President of international policy is an expert on the panel.  

    Through monthly meetings held since July 2020, this panel has gathered scientific summary reports and analyses on ongoing initiatives in the framework of, among others, the High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) of the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS) and the UN system (the UN and all its programmes, funds and specialised agencies).  The Scientific Panel ensures the reliability, representativeness and independence of the scientific data on which the Summit and its products are based. Among the many reports prepared by this panel, Jean-François Soussana (INRAE) and Sheryl Brook (UNESP, Brazil) coordinated the drafting of a background paper (available in English only) to carry out the first Action Track of the summit: The aim is to "ensure access to safe and nutritious food for all through the transformation of food systems".

    INRAE's involvement

    The goal of "Healthy and sustainable food for all" requires an integrative approach between agriculture-food-environment, which corresponds to INRAE's scientific strategy for 2030. Indeed, sustainability must be designed and applied at every stage of the food chain: a socially, economically and environmentally multi-performing agriculture; the reduction of resource loss and waste; varied, balanced and safe diets; producers who enjoy a decent standard of living; preserved ecosystems, and resistance to climatic and health upheavals. INRAE promotes the need for a transition of agricultural and food systems, combining the principles of agroecology with technical and social innovation such as digital agriculture and biotechnology.