“Making a Difference with Aquatic Foods: From Resilient Production to Nutritious School Meals” - CFS54 Side event

Climate change, water scarcity and other shocks are increasing pressure on food systems and access to nutritious diets. Aquatic foods such as fish, algae and mollusks can play an important role in strengthening food security, improving nutrition and supporting sustainable livelihoods when connected to resilient value chains, inclusive markets and healthy food environments.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Government of Germany—through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture—invite you to the CFS54 Side event “Making a Difference with Aquatic Foods: From Resilient Production to Nutritious School Meals” in Rome, that will bring together experiences from Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean, including examples from Malawi and Honduras, Bolivia and Belize to explore how sustainable aquatic food production can be linked to markets and school meal programs. Through a policy-oriented dialogue, participants will discuss practical approaches to connect small-scale producers with consumers, strengthen local economies, promote healthy diets for children, and scale inclusive and resilient aquatic food systems.

The event will also highlight the critical contributions of women, youth and small-scale fishers and aquaculture producers, and examine the policies, investments and partnerships needed to support food-system transformation, bringing forward perspectives from governments, FAO, civil society, academia and development partners for this timely exchange of experiences and solutions to advance resilient aquatic food systems and nutritious diets for all.

The session will feature the participation of the Government of Honduras, the Government of Malawi, WorldFish, the Aquatic Blue Food Coalition, the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions, the Rockefeller Foundation, the WFF Youth Group on Fisheries and Aquaculture, and the Global Action Network: Sustainable food from the ocean and inland waters for food security and nutrition.

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