FAO and World Union of Wholesale Markets partnership tackles food loss

23 Oct 2019 --- The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM) have joined forces to combat food loss and waste (FLW) within the food sector’s supply chains. Both organizations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) set to assure supplies of healthy and fresh food in an increasingly urbanized world. This three-year pact aims to collaborate in the fields of knowledge sharing, advocacy and capacity development, reduce FLW in food markets and in distribution systems. The main goal is to find and implement sustainable ways to feed the growing population in the years ahead.

“By working together through joint initiatives, we can develop capacities and make a difference in advocating for the application of good practice in applying sustainable practices in reducing FLW,” Rosa Rolle, FAO Technical Officer in charge of the WUWM partnership, tells FoodIngredientsFirst. She explains that the partnership aims to develop, share and exchange knowledge and information by means of dialogues, workshops and conferences with FAO’s partners and stakeholders.

FAO also offers WUWM members access to its e-learning courses to address different dimensions of the FLW problem. Members will also be invited to join the Community of Practice on FLW and be made aware of FAO’s various initiatives and available platforms that can be accessed to learn about different dimensions of the problem. In terms of the application of the Responsible Agriculture Investment principles, FAO foresees the potential of African countries, given the high level of interest in the development of market infrastructure. FAO is additionally actively working in Italy and in Spain, Rolle adds.

At the signing ceremony, WUWM emphasized how the global population is projected to reach 10 billion by 2050. Collaborative actions are direly needed to find wide-scale solutions to end hunger and feed a booming population. 

FAO and WUWM representatives gathered at FAO Headquarters to sign the MoU to continue the fight against food loss and waste. Source: FAO/Giulio Napolitano.“Wholesale markets are critical for producers and consumers,” says Máximo Torero Cullen, FAO Assistant Director-General, Economic and Social Development Department. “For producers, they allow them to aggregate what they produce and increase their access to markets and assure standards and food safety. For consumers, they provide access to diversified diets at affordable prices. Moreover, wholesale markets are the last phase in the chain of activities where food losses could occur so they are central in reducing them. Therefore, we need to find ways to work together,” he says.

The WUWM is one of the most dominant actors in the world for fresh food distribution. The organization represents more than 160 wholesale markets from every continent. It plays an essential role in ensuring a sustainable access, availability and distribution of a diverse variety of quality fresh food products, while maintaining competitive prices and high standards of food security and traceability. 

The organization highlighted at the ceremony that WUWM is a key actor for enabling small and local farmers to have a suitable platforms to sell their produce year round. Therefore, in comparison to supermarkets, wholesale markets are a real ground for local small agricultors to sell their stock.

Approximately 14 percent of the world’s food is lost after harvesting and before reaching the retail level. This includes loss through on-farm activities, storage and transportation, according to the State of Food and Agriculture 2019. However, the food losses vary considerably from one region to another within the same commodity groups and supply chain stages. 

This cooperation between the two organizations specifically targets UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12, “Responsible Consumption and Production.” This goal specifically intends to halve “per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses” by 2030. 

FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu has repeatedly stressed the need for green agriculture and innovative technology to sustain food systems and safeguard vital natural resources. 

To do so, FAO has recently also partnered with Danone to share data and knowledge, particularly on nutrition, food safety and responsible investments in agriculture, here in a bid to address SDG 2 - Zero Hunger. 

By Anni Schleicher