AlimentaLAB, the Public Policy Innovation Laboratory for Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems, was officially launched at a webinar held on 26 June. During the meeting, the digital platform for registering experiences from countries in the Global South that contribute to building fairer, healthier food systems that are resilient to climate change was presented.
Sustainable food systems are those that guarantee access to healthy, safe and nutritious food for all people, without depleting natural resources or jeopardising the livelihoods of those who produce it.
AlimentaLAB is one of the initiatives of the InovaSAN Project (a name that combines Innovation and Food and Nutrition Security, in Portuguese), the result of a partnership between the Ministry of Development and Social Assistance, Family and Fight against Hunger (MDS), the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) and the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil. The event was attended by representatives of the Brazilian government, international organisations and civil society.
For Daniel Balaban, director of the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil, AlimentaLAB is a collaborative space for disseminating experiences that promote public policies in the field of food security. “This initiative is part of an even bigger project, InovaSAN, which proposes the construction of sustainable paths that are important for tackling climate challenges,” he said.
The role of international cooperation in strengthening actions was highlighted by Ambassador Maria Luiza Lopes da Silva, Deputy Director of the Brazilian Cooperation Agency. “Initiatives like AlimentaLAB represent a collective effort to bring governments, academia and civil society together around a common goal, guaranteeing the right to adequate food.”
According to Lilian Rahal, National Secretary for Food and Nutritional Security at the MDS, the laboratory will be a space for valuing and exchanging innovative practices. “The project that begins today promotes actions to encourage intersectoral policies and programmes for healthier and more sustainable food systems. We are starting from common challenges with other countries, and co-operation allows for the exchange of innovative technologies that help us tackle these challenges.”
During the event, Gisele Bortolini, the coordinator for the Promotion of Healthy Eating at the MDS, presented the calendar of thematic initiatives on the AlimentaLAB platform. “All the initiatives can be registered at any time. But we will consolidate the experiences for presentation in an ebook and sharing in webinars,” she said.
In the Climate and Healthy Food Systems theme, the deadline for including the initiative is 31 August 2025. Under Urban Food Policies, the deadline is 30 November 2025. Food environments will have a deadline of 30 April 2026, and public procurement until 30 June 2026.
“There will be a total of 18 months to submit experiences on each of the axes and four discussion webinars. We want to bring the initiatives together and share them so that as many people from governments and civil society as possible can get to know them,” he said.
To access the call for innovative initiatives in sustainable food systems, visit alimentaLAB.prosas.com.br