How will we feed a world that, in about 30 years, will host 10 billion inhabitants? How to feed more and more people in the context of a climate change crisis and the increasingly limited availability of natural resources? And, especially, how to feed this growing population with higher nutritional quality? In the week in which it is celebrated the World Food Day (WFD), the United Nations invites the population of Brasilia to discuss such questions in an event open to the public, next Monday (14/10), at the National Museum.
This year, the event brings chef and activist Bela Gil as a guest. At 6 pm, she will talk about the importance of healthy diets and their consequences for society and the future of the planet. After Bela Gil’s lecture, the outside of the Complex will receive an open-air yoga class with the instructor Andrea Huges, scheduled for 7 pm. At the same time, phrases on sustainable development will be projected at the dome of the building. The activities are free and those interested should register at this link.
The 2019 World Food Day will be celebrated in 150 countries on October 16. It also highlights the anniversary of the foundation of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 1945. This year, WFD’s actions are organized by FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Food Program (WFP) Centre of Excellence Against Hunger and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).
The theme of this year’s celebrations is: “Our actions represent our future: healthy diets for a world with zero hunger.” The idea in choosing this slogan is that, from a more diversified and nutritious diet – which depends not only on a behavioral change of each person, but also on public policies that foster this social transformation – impacts will begin to be felt in the most different scenarios. Starting with the health of the population.
According to the latest FAO report, while hunger affected 821 million people worldwide in 2017, the proportion of obese adults reached 13.3% in 2016 – the equivalent of 672 million people. Already overweight people outnumber the people in food insecurity. In Brazil, while hunger affects less than 2.5% of the population, obesity already affects almost 20% of Brazilians. In some regions, such as the Northeast, other facets of malnutrition persist: child malnutrition, for example, is still above 5%.
“In a reality in which malnutrition is one of the great wounds of the contemporary world, reinventing food culture at all stages of the chain is an urgent call. A change that will have consequences not only on the better quality of the population’s food, but also in the world economy, the eradication of poverty and the sustainable development of the planet “, warns Rafael Zavala, FAO representative in Brazil.
“Besides being linked to the nutrition of individuals, nourishment also interferes in the development of societies through education, agriculture, social development and health. Proper and healthy feeding is the foundation for any human being and a well-fed human being can transform the world”, said the director of WFP Centre of Excellence Against Hunger, Daniel Balaban.