Green agriculture: FAO chief calls for better availability of fresh produce and less chemicals in food

10 Oct 2019 --- Green agriculture is the key to sustainable development to ensure global access to nutritious food and protect crucial natural resources. This is according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN FAO) Director-General Qu Dongyu, who spoke at the high-profile International Agro-Industrial Forum on the sidelines of the 21st “Golden Autumn - 2019” Exhibition in Moscow.

“We need to reduce residues of chemicals and other polluting elements in our food,” he said during the event, referring to the importance of international standards on chemical usage in food. The lack of availability and affordability of high-quality food and food diversity – including a wide range of fruit and vegetables – remained a core concern for Qu. He continued by highlighting the importance of shifting towards green production, green processing, which is “less environmentally polluting and less water consuming.”

Over the last century, the amount of food traded internationally has grown exponentially. An unprecedented quantity and variety of food travel the globe today. The Codex Alimentarius, which Qu referred to at the Golden Autumn event, consists of international food standards and codes of practice which contribute to the safety, quality and fairness of international food trade. Consumers can thus trust the safety and quality of the food products they purchase. Likewise, importers are guaranteed the food they ordered will be in accordance with their specifications.

The FAO Director-General stressed the need to reduce food loss and waste to avoid unnecessary waste of resources, energy and workforce. “In order to feed 10 billion people in 2050, we need to establish good policies enabling us to produce a sufficient amount of nutritious food in a sustainable manner,” Qu noted.

Strengthened relations
In order to achieve these criticla goals, Qu expressed his willingness to strengthen cooperation between the UN and Russia. He added that the country has achieved huge progress in agrifood production over the past five years. Moreover, he highlighted how each Russian region has a competitive advantage in delivering high quality food.

Qu envisioned a “win-win situation” from strengthening not only relations with Russia, but also other EU member states as well as African countries in need of technical and other assistance. 

Russian Agricultural Exhibition “Golden Autumn” is held annually by the Government of the Russian Federation, with the exhibition organized by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation and supported by the Government of Moscow. Reaching a wide audience, this event is the main agricultural forum in Russia for over 20 years, developing modern technology exhibition business in agribusiness.

Edited by Anni Schleicher