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Discussion Topic 2.2: Role of markets in future food system (smart markets) - Recommendations • Segregate the entry and exit paths and clean up heaped-up wastes or unused materials in the passageways to improve crowd control inside markets • Improve ventilation and lighting by replacing the walls of the markets with transparent and meshed materials • Put up rooftop solar systems on markets for power backup • Digitalize transaction and business processes of conventional food markets; Connect fresh market vendors with e-commerce platforms to improve their access; Uptake digital payment s... Read moreystems to reduce risk of cross-contamination by replacing cash handling • Utilize the rooftops of fresh markets for food production such as hydroponics, precision agriculture with IoT, and biofloc for fisheries, which can create alternate income source for low-income service providers working inside the markets and a self-sustaining circular food system economy centering the markets; however, research is required to identify the manageable and effective options for various kinds of markets • Mobilize public-private investments to leverage the opportunities for market upgradation • Changes in regulatory mechanism of fresh markets and governance of market committees • Install adequate water points and sanitation facilities (toilets, handwashing points) inside fresh markets to ensure safe and clean water supply and proper hygiene • Prioritize development of market infrastructures in development agenda of the government to ensure allocation of adequate public resources • Enhance cooperation among relevant government departments and ministries • Involve health departments to raise awareness regarding food safety • Educate food vendors on safe food handling, risks of cross-contamination, and fire safety • Conduct social and behavioral change programs and raise awareness among both vendors and consumers on personal hygiene, waste disposal and management, food safety, and good conduct in collaboration with market management committees, government agencies, and NGOs through IEC-BCC materials and other media • Form a separate body inside city government structures which will be responsible for market infrastructure development, planning, implementation, monitoring, upgradation/ maintenance, and management • Make fresh markets adequately spacious proportionate with the crowd • Device an integrated plan throughout the value chain to reduce food loss and keep up food quality • Allocate separate vending spaces for live birds, other meats, fish, and vegetables and fruits; Develop separate facilities to process fish, live birds, and meats (slaughtering, cutting, cleaning, processing, and preserving) • Develop proper waste disposal system in markets to dispose all kinds of food wastes; Introduce bin bags of different colors to ensure segregation of wastes at source • Ensure proper fire management facilities in markets with sufficient manpower, equipment, and resources allocated • Form fire safety response teams with participation of market committees • Provide farmers/ producers with direct access to markets to improve food safety • Formulate and enforce regulations for better governance of markets; provisions for penalties and rewards can be introduced Read less

Discussion Topic 3.1: Food safety and effective management of markets - Challenges • Food wastes of fresh markets are disposed unsafely leading to contamination of the nearby food products • Markets lack the minimal personal hygiene facilities for both sellers and buyers (handwashing facilities with soap is also absent), which augments the chances of contamination of the products from humans • Shops are very congested with no separate sections for different food items, increasing risk of microbial cross contamination which is a food safety concern • Markets lack sufficient supply of ic... Read morees for preservation of fish leading to loss of quality and freshness • Prices of agricultural products rise by four folds while reaching the end customers from farmers. Food traders often increase prices irrationally which triggers price shocks, putting low-income groups in food insecurity. • Price of a few products sometimes rises up strikingly such as, onion, chilly, and potato due to fluctuations in production or imports. At such times, the syndicates of traders raise prices of those products even higher, to make very high profits unethically. Even if government takes steps to subside such price hikes by increasing international imports, reducing/ removing tariffs on imports, and subsidizing those products locally, their initiatives make no effect as the private traders’ syndicates control the entire market. Resisting such unethical business and disbanding the market syndicates are major challenges. • Meat shops keep raw meat hanging in the shops without any covering which may spur microbial contamination. • Vendors and buyers inside markets dispose all kinds of wastes together, without any segregation. There are no separate bins for different kinds of wastes and even if they are provided with separate bins, they are uninclined to segregate wastes. Thus, bringing behavioral change is a big challenge. • Food safety gets compromised at production level sometimes due to presence of heavy metals (arsenic or lead) in the soil. • Rates of food loss is very high along the chain while foods travel from farmers to the markets. • Some of the vendors apply harmful chemicals to keep products for a longer time • Risks of spreading diseases increase due to cash transactions conducted in markets Read less

Discussion Topic 3.2: Food safety and effective management of markets - Recommendations • Maintain good hygiene inside markets, especially for vendors; raise awareness among vendors on personal hygiene; introduce and conduct regular health checkups for vendors • Design and build necessary infrastructures to improve waste disposal and drainage systems of markets • Develop cold chains throughout the value chain and cold storages inside markets for products such as fish to prevent loss of quality and freshness • Encourage and implement basic waste segregate (biodegradable and non- biodegr... Read moreadable) inside markets; utilize biodegradable wastes to produce compost and use for soil fertilization • Conduct routine market monitoring by food inspectors; engage city governments, BFSA, and consumer associations into monitoring • Introduce grading system for food vendors • Train up food vendors on safe food handling and preservation, and market maintenance rules • Promote usage of refrigerated vans for transportation of perishable products • Generate stakeholder mapping along with roles played by different actors to come up with informed recommendations to enhance food safety • Develop targeted knowledge products on food safety for different actors with the help of social scientist and methodological approaches for better outreach and impact • Establishing separate specialized markets only for fish and live birds to improve hygiene and waste management • Put up potable water and sanitation facilities inside marketplace • Improve product load and unload facilities in markets to reduce food loss and keep up quality • Monitor waste management status of markets regularly • Device pre and post-harvest waste management systems to utilize agricultural wastes efficiently (i.e. as fertilizer, animal feed) and to reduce food waste • Upgrade traditional fresh markets to smart markets; examples of standard fresh markets from other countries can be followed • Engage a third-party to manage vendors of fresh markets where all vendors will require to get registered with proof of identity and knowledge of hygiene and safe food handling to be allowed to vend in the market; allocate uniform for all registered food vendors • Generate a list of safe food suppliers for each market and allow vendors to buy products from those affiliated suppliers only • Keep rapid food testing facilities (nomadic labs) inside markets • Raise awareness of food producers/ farmers on safe food production and GAP • Align all rules, regulations, and law enforcing agencies related to food safety under a single umbrella for better coordination and integration; BFSA can be the suitable one to organize other agencies • Develop guidelines/ user manuals for every actor inside markets mentioning their roles and responsibilities for proper maintenance • Introduce grading and pricing of food items according to freshness/ proximity to expiry date to reduce food loss • Use GIS mapping to select most effective spots to situate storage facilities Read less

Markets play a critical role in delivering food to urban populations. A recent FAO study indicates that 95% of urban poor mostly purchase their food from fresh markets as foods there, are fresh, diversified, and more affordable. However, food safety and hygiene conditions have been poor in most urban fresh markets. Due to absence of cross contamination prevention measurements and proper sanitation facility, fresh markets have been associated with the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 1 (SARS-CoV-1), and most recently SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) in humans. Fish constitutes 60% o... Read moref total animal protein intake, but fish markets are commonly filthy, ill-managed, unhygienic and unhealthy. 50% of meat shops do not have proper drainage facility, 30% slaughter animals without inspection of a veterinary surgeon or meat inspector, 90% slaughter a sick animal, and 90% animals do not have anti-mortem examination. Risky practices (keeping live birds and slaughtering at the same place, keeping poultry overnight, holding poultry on floor, and housing sick and healthy poultry together), hygiene, and infrastructure in live bird markets (LBM) are associated with an increased likelihood of shop contamination with Avian Influenza Viruses. 62.8% shops do not isolate the sick, dehydrated, or physically damaged birds after arrival to the shops. No veterinarian is found in LBMs for anti-mortem and postmortem inspection. Dhaka’s population has increased by more than 4 folds in last thirty years, but market infrastructures and soft skills of people involved, have not been developed to handle such a boost in number of customers. Underinvestment in physical conditions of food markets has meant that bringing about change is a challenge with very little leadership coming forward to do so willingly in a coordinated manner. Bangladesh incurs food loss during handling and storage in markets due to lack of technology, infrastructure, and awareness. It loses 30% cereal, 35% fish and 45% from farm to distribution. Post-harvest loss of fruits and vegetables ranges between 22%-44%. The unmanaged food waste produced by fresh markets poses substantial threats to the environment (landfill gas emissions). These wastes can be used for energy recovery via waste to energy technologies, thus diverting food waste away from landfills. Reducing food loss and waste (FLW) and adopting these interventions can be benefitting for economy, environment, and communities. Most of the fresh market workers work under very poor conditions. A field survey in various vegetable markets suggests that sanitation facility there, is not adequate and in some cases is not present at all. A study on meat shops found that 60% and 65% of them did not have toilet and hand washing facility, respectively. 87% of retail fish market workers do not wash hands after defecation. The fresh markets and the backward value chain could not cope up well with the shocks of Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdowns. Urban markets have seen price hikes due to lack of supplies, whereas, the small scale producers suffered in getting their produces to markets and ended up dumping off the perishable products. Also, fresh markets lost customers because of allegedly being the hotspots of spreading Coronavirus, making people to switch to more expensive alternatives. The growth in online food businesses during this period has been inequitable, for both consumers and fresh market vendors. Read less

Improving the value chain to reduce food loss and waste and ensure food quality: Establish cold chains and device an integrated plan across the value chain ensuring proper price for products; forecast demands for major agricultural products and modulate production accordingly; invest in research for climate-smart production and marketing systems and scientific and hygienic post-harvest management and processing to increase shelf-life of perishable products; promote business ethics and modern trading practices; introduce dedicated refrigerated vehicles; use GIS mapping to select most effective ... Read morespots to situate storage facilities; device pre and post-harvest waste management systems; promote community enterprise approach; organize farmers under cooperatives; ensure access to safe inputs, financial services, and wider markets; mechanize agriculture to reduce production cost; traceability Upgrade market infrastructures: Build market infrastructures with trained manpower, WASH facilities, uninterrupted electricity, cold chains/ storage facilities, waste management and drainage systems, fire management and close routine monitoring by authorities engaging city governments, BFSA, and consumer associations; environment-friendly, gender-responsive, and climate-resilient physical designs; develop and implement a masterplan for markets; utilize biodegradable wastes in composting; improve crowd control; connect fresh markets with e-commerce; uptake digital payment systems; utilize resources in markets for food production for self-sustaining circular food system economy centering markets; mobilize public-private investments for market upgradation and transformation to smart markets; form fire safety response teams by market committees; source products from affiliated suppliers only; rapid food testing facilities; ensure proper functioning of market committees; introduce certification, grading, and registration scheme for actors; segregated space for different products and separate spots to display, process, and preserve; compliance with market infrastructure design standards; incentivize waste segregation at source; engage private sector in market management Capacity building and awareness: Train up and build widespread awareness among all actors (from producers, vendors to consumers) on food safety, food and personal hygiene, safe food handling and transportation/ preservation, market maintenance rules, good conduct, waste management, food quality, and nutrition over mainstream and social media in collaboration with market committees, government, and private stakeholders; make farmers/ producers aware of safe food production and GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) through trainings and demonstrations; strengthen civil society and consumers’ movement for safe and nutritious food; social and behavioral change programs; develop targeted knowledge products/ communication materials; conduct sector-wise mass campaign; trainings at different levels (market authorities, traders) on market management, governance, and systemic change to respond to shocks and crisis Policy, governance, monitoring, and coordination: Enact legal framework including policies and programs aligned with international standards; horizontal accountability by all stakeholders; decentralized authorities; stronger and more coordinated monitoring and supervision throughout supply chain; prioritize development of market infrastructures in development agenda to ensure adequate allocation of public resources; enhanced cooperation/ coordination among relevant government departments and ministries; formulation of a separate body inside city government responsible for market infrastructure development, planning, implementation, monitoring, upgradation/ maintenance, and management; formulate and enforce regulations for better governance of markets; market management guidelines with specific responsibilities for market committee; provisions for penalties and rewards; stakeholder mapping with roles played by different actors to generate informed recommendations to enhance food safety; align all rules, regulations, and law enforcing agencies related to food safety under a common legal framework for better coordination and integration; incentivize value chain actors for producing/ marketing safe foods; record keeping system for traceability; decentralized laboratory facility; joint market monitoring through multi-stakeholder engagement; common platform for suppliers-traders-vendors-consumers; access to production and product information for consumers; forecast consumer demands and ensure supply of products accordingly to avoid price shocks and reduce food loss; engage CSOs and volunteer groups into complaint management; mobilize social investment and capital to leverage technology transfer, adaption of GAP, and market transformation towards responsible consumption and sustainable production; grading and certification of products based on testing; engage different stakeholders in decision making process; central monitoring system to track implementation of market management policies; strengthen monitoring systems; ensure good governance including accountability and transparency; formal institutional structure for market legislation; acts, rules in place with institutional structure to enact those; encourage urban agriculture; efficient coordination among physical infrastructure, management, and governance Read less

Discussion Topic 1.1: Market system, supply chains, and urban-rural connectivity - Challenges In the prevailing subsistence-agriculture system in Bangladesh, small scale producers are the major contributor in the market systems. Foods travel not only from rural to urban areas, but from urban to rural, as well. Mostly fresh, unprocessed foods are transported from rural to urban markets, while processed and semi-processed foods make their way from urban areas to rural markets. Foods grown by limited usage of fertilizers and pesticides are considered safer among consumers. Rural areas are mainly ... Read moreconsidered as production centers, middlemen are believed to be transporters engaged in short-term storages and distributions, and urban people are chiefly consumers. In Bangladesh, food safety is an enduring issue and intertwining challenge due to consumption of contaminated, unsafe, and unhygienic foods that have long-term multi-faceted adverse effects on people. Unsafe food containing harmful bacteria, virus, parasites, fungi or chemicals (pesticides/ fungicides/ antimicrobial / heavy metals) cause more than 200 diseases and about 600 million people suffer from illness every year in the world. It has adverse effects on health, livelihoods, economic, social, political and environmental dimension of the society, which needs to be addressed with appropriate policy initiatives. Food safety is a shared responsibility between governments, producers, and consumers. Everyone has a role to play from farm to table to ensure the food we consume is safe and healthy. Major challenges: • Rural market systems are quite different from urban markets, though rural markets are the major marketing systems prevailing in the country. • Supply chain is still traditional following age-old practices resulting in food loss and deterioration in quality and economic value. Modern trades, though slowly improving, constitute only 2% of the total market volume. • Transportation of agri-products from producers’ to consumers is very time consuming, often hazardous, and expensive. • There is no or very limited cooling facilities available along the value chains. • In most rural markets and urban growth centers, foods get contaminated by unhygienic environment, polluted water, and inappropriate handling, transportation, and storage • Vegetables and fruits are not treated hygienically, which results in contamination and loss of freshness and nutrients • Farmers are reluctant to grow safe foods using less pesticides as they think those products cannot attract consumers’ attention in the markets, compared to products grown with excessive application of fertilizers and pesticides. • More than 95% of the consumers in the market do not want to pay extra price for safe foods. • At most rural and urban growth centers/ marketplaces, running water supply, sorting, packaging and storage facilities are unavailable. • At urban points, departmental stores/ super-shops have potentials to offer safe foods but they constitute only about 1% of the supplies • Sometimes, agricultural and non-agricultural products are transported altogether, which augments the risk of cross-contamination and food loss • Transportation of agri-products from producers point to consumer point is very time consuming, often hazardous and expensive. Read less

Para dar respuesta a la pregunta planteada de ¿Cómo mejorar el acceso a los alimentos saludables en zonas urbanas? se organizan las propuestas en los siguientes ámbitos: -Educación: importancia de profundizar en los currículums tanto preescolar como escolar para que incorporen obligatoriamente temas de alimentos, alimentación, nutrición y sistema agroalimentario, que incluya aspectos teóricos pero también prácticos por ejemplo a través del desarrollo de huertas escolares y otras actividades que acerquen a los niños, niñas y adolescentes al campo, al mar, a la cultura alimentaria y... Read more a la alimentación saludable. -Espacios de encuentro y organización social: fomentar la colaboración, intercambio de saberes y formación, donde participen los actores y actrices de toda la cadena alimentaria (productores, familiares, feriantes, consumidores y otros). Fortalecer la organización territorial, la solidaridad y la confianza, replicando experiencias exitosas durante la pandemia tanto en términos de compras conjuntas, de comedores comunitarios, de aprovechamiento de desperdicios y otras iniciativas que puedan surgir del diálogo entre comunidades y del fortalecimiento del tejido social. -Desarrollo local, soberanía territorial y producción artesanal: un asistente dijo “la respuesta está en los territorios”. Esto define esta reflexión colectiva. La base para la definición y acción de un modelo alimentario sostenible debe provenir de los propios territorios y sus comunidades, en base a sus saberes, su cultura, cosmovisión y soberanía. Es menester avanzar hacia modelos donde la cadena de intermediación sea menor y teniendo como eje la economía social, protegiendo los suelos, las semillas, el agua, los recursos naturales y el derecho a la alimentación saludable de los individuos, las familias y las comunidades, donde se fomente la biodiversidad, se desaliente el extravismo y se procure la protección del medio ambiente. -Tiempo para relacionarse con los alimentos: Los tiempos urbanos actuales no permiten que nos relacionemos bien con los alimentos, por ejemplo para la compra (los horarios laborales coinciden con los horarios de funcionamiento de mercados y ferias), para la preparación (el cansancio nos hace preferir la rapidez, más que el proceso como una oportunidad de placer y de aprendizaje para niños y niñas) y para la comensalidad (comer en familia, con amigos, compartir, conversar). Esto tiene relación con las extensas jornadas laborales, con las largas distancias de desplazamiento al trabajo o escuela, y con el modelo de crecimiento urbano, entre otros. Es importante repensar la perspectiva de desarrollo territorial integral, considerando la gestión de las propias comunidades y la reflexión del cómo queremos vivir. El sistema alimentario forma parte de este desarrollo. -Consumir sano y des-elitización del consumo saludable. La alimentación saludable está fuertemente determinada por el nivel educacional, social, económico y cultural, así como por los entornos que rodean a las personas. Es necesaria la democratización del sistema alimentario, mejorar las condiciones socioeconómicas y educacionales, reconocer la relevancia de lo cultural y mejorar los entornos alimentarios y comunitarios, para que todas y todos tengamos derecho a una alimentación sostenible y saludable. Read less

En esta sección se indican las principales propuestas emanadas del diálogo, las que hemos organizado por temática. Las propuestas deberían ser desarrolladas intersectorialmente, con actores de distintos ámbitos, incluyendo la participación social: Acciones educativas y comunicacionales en temas de alimentos, alimentación y nutrición: -Incorporar en el currículum escolar y preescolar estos temas así como los valores culturales del acto de alimentarse. -Desarrollo de huertas escolares, urbanas, comunitarias, y en los hogares. -Desarrollar planes educativos dirigidos a las comunidades p... Read moreara empoderarlas en estos temas. -Desarrollar campañas comunicacionales en torno a estos temas. Por ejemplo, recetarios con pertenencia cultural, alimentación saludable, origen de los alimentos, etc. Read less

Acciones para transformar el sistema alimentario: -Articular a los actores y actrices de la producción, distribución y consumo de alimentos para fortalecer el desarrollo de mercados locales. Para ello se requiere apoyo estatal que permita ir realizando las iniciativas que nazcan de estos encuentros. -Desarrollo de mercados locales. Mayor incidencia de los municipios en el apoyo de un sistema alimentario local. Apoyar a la producción artesanal y ferias libres. Incorporación en planes comunales. -Compras estatales deberían ser a pequeños productores locales, sin intermediación de concesio... Read morenarias. -Colectivización del consumo. Potenciar otras formas de consumo y de comercialización. Por ejemplo, desarrollo de grupos de consumos, redes en torno a la entrega de canastas o comunidades organizadas. Estos espacios a su vez tienen el potencial de autoeducarse en lo que respecta al sistema alimentario u otros tópicos. Financiamiento público para estas iniciativas. -Desarrollo de centros de abastecimiento de producción de pequeña escala a niveles locales y regionales. Para descentralizar la producción y consumo de alimentos y favorecer el desarrollo local mediante financiamiento público. -Redefinir la o las instituciones relacionadas al mundo alimentario considerando una perspectiva integral (por ejemplo, unir la institucionalidad de agricultura con pesca y relacionadas a la alimentación). -Aumentar disponibilidad de ferias libres en zonas urbanas, distribuirlas en muchos lugares, aumentar horarios y flexibilizar los formatos de funcionamiento. Lo anterior requiere considerar apoyo en su habilitación. -Acciones en torno a un comercio justo que favorezcan a los más pequeños y los circuitos cortos de comercialización, y que por ejemplo tengan ventajas tributarias como exención de impuestos u otros; esto podría incluir la fijación de precios evaluando el cómo y sus consecuencias. Al tener un diálogo activo entre distintos actores tales como productores y consumidores, se pueden implementar medidas permitan tener “un colchón” frente a eventos impredecibles y agresivos como el Covid-19. Read less

La principal divergencia giró en torno si alimentarse de manera saludable es barato o caro; algunos opinan que se exagera al decir que es de alto costo, pero hay factores que influyen en ello tales como la disponibilidad (que no es igual en todas partes), si es orgánico (lo que encarece) y el acceso económico (es más caro en lo relativo para el más pobre, entre otros. Se manifestó que la alimentación saludable es para una determinada clase social. Otra divergencia no tan evidente, pero que surge, es cuánto pesa la educación en la mala alimentación de la población, vs los determinant... Read morees más estructurales de la alimentación. Read less

El diálogo versó sobre ¿Cómo mejorar el acceso a los alimentos saludables en zonas urbanas? El contexto temático es que Chile es un país con altas cifras de malnutrición por exceso y mala alimentación, con alto consumo de alimentos ultraprocesados y bajo cumplimiento de las recomendaciones alimentarias, en todos los grupos etarios, con mayor prevalencia en el nivel socioeconómico y educacional más bajo y en mujeres, mostrando inequidades inaceptables. Los alimentos saludables recomendados para la población provienen principalmente de la producción a pequeña escala (agricultura cam... Read morepesina y pesca artesanal) y son distribuidos mayoritariamente por pequeños comerciantes (mercados y ferias libres). Sin embargo estos pequeños productores y comerciantes, no cuentan con suficiente apoyo y no se les otorga la relevancia que tienen, por parte del Estado. Los grandes centros de abastecimiento están muy centralizados en grandes ciudades. Al mismo tiempo resultan ser un sector sumamente vulnerable, lo que ha quedado demostrado durante la pandemia. No existe un claro reconocimiento de la producción a pequeña escala y el desarrollo de mercados locales, la cadena de intermediarios es muy larga con lo que se va perdiendo el origen de los productos y aumentando su costo. Ejemplos claros de estas falencias es que la mayor parte de frutas y verduras pasan por la capital antes de ser distribuidas al resto del país, viajando una cantidad enorme de kilómetros contribuyendo a la huella de carbono y aumentar su costo; así también lo demuestra el bajo número de ferias libres en el país y su alta concentración en pocas urbes, vs una población con crecientes demandas. Las políticas alimentarias y de fomento agrario y pesquero en Chile se quedaron cortas y no están dando cuenta de las necesidades actuales. No existe una mirada integral institucional ni lineamientos claros sobre el sistema alimentario al que aspiramos. Estas falencias tienen consecuencias tanto en el acceso físico y económico, como en la disponibilidad y en el consumo de alimentos saludables, así como en el modelo de producción (poco sostenible). Se ha hecho más hincapié en producir para exportar y no faltar a los tratados internacionales, que en la soberanía alimentaria y la sostenibilidad productiva. Nuestra población conoce poco sobre temas de alimentos, alimentación y nutrición, se observa que los currículums escolares no incluyen estas áreas a pesar que la educación tiene un fuerte impacto en los hábitos de consumo, y por ende en el estado nutricional y en la salud, especialmente referido a enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles. En el último tiempo, se ha observado en algunos grupos poblacionales selectos que ha aumentado la demanda de productos orgánicos, naturales, y de origen vegetal, pero esto es excepcional y aún de muy alto costo. En Chile la alimentación adecuada no está considerada como un derecho, de hecho no está explícita en la Constitución vigente. Read less

Food and Nutrition Rights for Food Systems in Central Malawi. The purpose of an Independent dialogue in Central Malawi was to initiate a district stakeholder dialogue of critical nexus issues that are key for sustainable food systems in central Malawi, through interconnection and engagement with the Food Systems Summit process. Specifically, the dialogue sought to: 1) Create a platform for discussion on the design of what it would take for a future sustainable food system for Central Malawi that delivers nutrition outcomes, and sustainable consumption patterns by 2030. 2) How district stakehol... Read moreders can work together for such a future sustainable food system for Central Malawi towards 2030. Read less

Multi stakeholder recommitment to the global call for increased nutritional outcomes in local food systems, stakeholders in Central Malawi collectively agreed for a common vision of reducing malnutrition levels by 50% from the present 44% to 22% by year 2030. In repositioning for impact towards the Vision of reduced malnutrition by the year 2030, stakeholders agreed the following actions to be undertaken: i. Increased level coordination of nutrition programmes and nutrition reporting by all actors, with a central planning and reporting. The Nutrition Officer (Department of Health) to act as a ... Read morefocal point for this coordination, and facilitate development of nutrition action plan to be supported by all stakeholders. ii. Stakeholders both public and private involved in nutrition to support revamping and strengthening of local nutrition institution/committees for effective delivery of nutrition programmes. iii. Promotion of diversified local food production of both plant and animal for nutrition outcomes, and localized cooking demonstrations at community level. iv. Reposition local community leaders as nutrition champions in their communities and build their capacity for such roles. The Central Government and other national institutions were called upon to support the district initiatives through the following interventions: i. The Malawi Bureau of Standards to decentralize and localize their operations to ensure food safety standards are adhered to by all actors in the food systems especially the private sector at all levels. ii. The Government has to increase public investment in the livestock sector. Government has prioritized subsidies in the crop sector at the expense of the livestock sector. The livestock sector remains underfunded and without adequate support services. iii. There is need for supporting policy environment for the marketing of farmers’ farm produce. Government has to develop a pricing policy for farmers’ produce that should be enforced year in and year out to protect farmers from heartless private sector players who make lots of profits at the expense of poor farmers. iv. Introduction of nutrition education in primary schools, and re-introduce the home craft model of community nutrition education as it proved successful at community level. Read less

Multi stakeholder coordination for nutrition outcome. The Department of Health to be the focal point. CEPA to support multi stakeholder meetings for monitoring progress and ensure reporting of nutrition outcomes.

Creating a vision for nutrition outcomes in Central Malawi. The stakeholders had different proposed targets ranging from 10% to 50%. A participatory discussion was facilitated with open views to every stakeholder to consolidate the multi stakeholder vision and finally agreed for 50%. The target had to be ambitious enough to call for each other participation and the need to invite others into the dialogue and the vision for sustainable food systems.

Starting from the question on how to harmonize food systems and nature conservation towards just nature-people relations the dialogues were first reflecting in regional disparities and commonalities. Similar challenges were identified across the four regions in their transformation towards a just and sustainable food system and the following entry points were identified: promoting opportunities for the youth in the food system, realizing nature-positive and just food production, as well as bridging the disconnect between consumers and producers towards fairer food supply chains. The synthesize... Read mored regional perspectives were incorporated into the discussion with global stakeholders and renowned experts. The global dialogue verified and refined the outcomes from the regional conversations and emphasized the importance of additional, cross-cutting points: The role of power asymmetries in the food system, with the poorest and the non-humans paying the prize. The importance of contextualized, local solutions, incorporating local knowledge, people and perspectives. The recognition of the interactions between food systems and health systems, with healthy food depending on healthy environments. The role of emotions as important drivers of change for the transformation towards a sustainable food system. The importance of gender equality for a sustainable food system. Focusing on the true cost of food in terms of unpacking the value of the food system. Read less

To harmonize food systems with nature and climate protection and human wellbeing, just nature-people relations must be put center stage. We call for recognizing, harnessing and protecting the wealth of knowledge from diverse systems, including lay, practical and local knowledge that can help us make our global food system more just, sustainable and resilient. We consider promoting opportunities for youth in the food system, realizing nature positive and just food production and bridging the disconnect between consumers and producers to be mutually reinforcing if the right levers are deployed. ... Read moreIn this context those levers would mean to 1) create governance structures and financial mechanisms that foster sustainable agriculture, fair food chains and healthy diets, 2) provide incentives and economic support for the youth to seek a career along the food value chain, as well as 3) empowerment, self-determination, dignity, the protection of rights and participation, allowing for engaged communities along the entire food chain that are encouraged to set development priorities and hold decision-makers accountable. Accountability and transparency in sustainable resources and land use can bring more justice and equity to agricultural production and natural resource management. Sustainable land stewardship that perceives land, water and agrobiodiversity as part of the global commons, represents the entry point to develop multiple-benefit strategies for cultivating diversified food production systems, transforming production and consumption habits, restoring our ecosystems, enhancing the resilience in the climate emergency, contributing to local livelihoods and promoting human wellbeing. To holistically address the climate and biodiversity emergency, fight inequality and achieve human wellbeing, the following principles must be applied: -Valuing existing knowledge and tailoring it to a specific context to explore novel approaches. -Sharing learnings, including across regions to assess the scalability of innovative ideas. -Promoting locally adapted solutions that combine the best of local as well as scientific knowledge systems. -Ensuring justice within societies by understanding the barriers as well as the incentives that cause injustice in the given contexts. Complexity must be acknowledged, as out of the myriad of solutions from the micro to the meso scale, the best approaches will very much depend on biophysical, socio-economic and cultural conditions, governance and policy framework, as well as specific drivers of change, including fiscal incentives. Systemic barriers must be removed and diversity celebrated, as solutions considering the specificities of the given context and which have been developed in a collaborative, holistic and integrated way, enhance the resilience of agricultural and food systems to pests, pathogens and the climate emergency. At the same time, those solutions must also promote gender equality and human wellbeing. Knowledge must be drawn from diverse systems, in promoting transdisciplinary approaches, and in bringing together scientific, lay, practical and indigenous knowledge and different world views. The freshness of perspective from the youth must be embraced and we must answer to the fundamental questions they dare to raise and which have been buried for too long. We call upon governments to implement governance structures and set the right incentives that reflect the ambition of creating just nature people relations and a sustainable food system. We urge the financial and private sector to use their capabilities and power for positive change. We call upon research to support the transformation through knowledge, including asking the uncomfortable questions related to power in our unsustainable food system. We require civil society to accept the shared responsibility and become agents of change. Read less

Promoting employment and decent work for the youth mirrors measures proposed in Action Track 4 Advance equitable livelihoods. To further this goal, governance structures must change, including tackling the political economy that creates perverse incentives, and developing a new communication approach to increase the attractiveness of the food sector for the youth and enhance their opportunities; setting the right incentives and creating new employment opportunities within the sector prevents a “youth drain” and the loss of traditional knowledge.​ Youth has to have access to finance, in o... Read morerder for it to deploy its full potential to innovate and co-create new solutions and financial institution need to be convinced to invest in young farmers and entrepreneurs. Boosting nature-positive food production, as proposed by Action Track 3, requires a food system governance that reduces resource intensity to stop biodiversity loss, pollution and water and soil degradation, while recognizing and protecting the rights and needs of smallholder farmers, livestock keepers, fishers and hunters. This must go hand in hand with embracing multifunctional landscapes with diversified agricultural systems that build on the principles of agroecology as one specific entry point. In this context, land tenure security is a prerequisite for sustainable food systems, as secure access to land for land users can create incentives for the sustainable use of land. In this light, the financial sector needs to abandon financing unsustainable practices and finance innovative solutions that contribute to nature-positive food production. Bridging the divide between consumers and producers in order to ensure access to safe and nutritious food for all and shift to sustainable consumption patterns, the interests of consumers and producers must be aligned to provide nutritious food at affordable prices, while ensuring a fair and livable income for producers. We call for addressing power structures in value chains that deepen the disconnect, by internalizing transparency and true costs, as part of redesigning food systems policy frameworks. One way to achieve this is by redirecting power towards consumers and producers, for example by shortening the food chain, strengthening local food networks and build consumer demand for sustainable food. Similarly, Action Track 1 promotes access to safe and nutritious food for all, while Action Track 2 calls or a shift to sustainable consumption patterns. Read less

Role of science - to what extent does science also assume a normative function Role of technology - to what extent is it an enabler or an obstacle exacerbating power differentials Role and responsibility of business versus role of governments in terms of incentivizing transformation Regenerative agriculture : questioning the potential for new jobs, as other jobs get lost, or: is regenerative agriculture really the systemic solution to the challenge Notion of scaling / scalability - is not easy to capture Eurocentricity/westernised view of the debate, seeing nature of developing countries as th... Read moree source for solving the universal challenges Read less

Starting from the question on how to harmonize food systems and nature conservation towards just nature-people relations the dialogues were first reflecting in regional disparities and commonalities. Similar challenges were identified across the four regions in their transformation towards a just and sustainable food system and the following entry points were identified: promoting opportunities for the youth in the food system, realizing nature-positive and just food production, as well as bridging the disconnect between consumers and producers towards fairer food supply chains. The synthesize... Read mored regional perspectives were incorporated into the discussion with global stakeholders and renowned experts. The global dialogue verified and refined the outcomes from the regional conversations and emphasized the importance of additional, cross-cutting points: The role of power asymmetries in the food system, with the poorest and the non-humans paying the prize. The importance of contextualized, local solutions, incorporating local knowledge, people and perspectives. The recognition of the interactions between food systems and health systems, with healthy food depending on healthy environments. The role of emotions as important drivers of change for the transformation towards a sustainable food system. The importance of gender equality for a sustainable food system. Focusing on the true cost of food in terms of unpacking the value of the food system. Read less