FAO chief calls for global changes in farming

• The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) met this week in Rome.
  FAO Secretary General Jose Graziano da Silva covered various topics in his remarks, including agroecology, malnutrition and food insecurity, and climate-smart agriculture.
  Scientific evidence on agroecology was presented during the meeting. According to a piece from OxFam America, among the evidence presented was how the right trees, in the right arrangement, at the right location yields benefits in terms of improved soil fertility, food and income.
  Also during the meeting, Graziano da Silva said European governments must help combat hunger and malnutrition on a global level, as failure to do so will boost migration flows and stoke conflicts.
  Graziano da Silva also called for a “paradigm shift” in approaches to overhauling global food systems, making them healthier and more sustainable. He said agroecology, climate-smart agriculture, biotechnology and the use of genetically modified organisms should be explored.
   “We need to explore these alternatives using an inclusive approach based on science and evidences, not on ideologies,” as well as to “respect local characteristics and context,” he said.
  Graziano da Silva urged members of the FAO’s Committee on Agriculture (COAG) to consider the importance of family farming in all aspects of its agenda.