A year of action and festivities – Europe and Central Asia celebrate FAO80 and World Food Day in 2025
Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future
FAO/Maria Utkina
31/12/2025
People coming together to plant trees in Yerevan. A group of Kyrgyz mountain climbers reaching one of Central Asia’s highest summits – the 7 134-metre-high Lenin Peak – to place an FAO flag at the top. Schoolchildren in Serbia learning about healthy diets and nutrition to establish good eating habits at a young age.
World Food Day 2025 united people and communities to act together to promote a sustainable, safer and climate-resilient future, where everyone has a full plate.
World Food Day is commemorated every year on 16 October, on the founding date of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). This year, however, was a special milestone, as it marked the eightieth anniversary of FAO’s foundation in 1945. This means 80 years of hard work to eradicate world hunger, support farmers, smallholders and agricultural workers, and build strong rural economies to uphold a universal human right: the right to food.
The theme this year – “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future” – is a call for increased collaboration and cooperation to transform agrifood systems.
Celebrate, educate, participate: activities in the region
Across Europe and Central Asia, the eightieth anniversary of FAO and World Food Day 2025 became a regional celebration of leadership, solidarity and innovation. FAO offices and partners mobilized governments, youth, farmers, civil society and the media in a vibrant showcase of commitment to sustainable agrifood systems.
From mountainous Bosnia and Herzegovina all the way to landlocked Uzbekistan, events highlighted FAO’s crucial role in boosting rural areas and communities.
Greening the region
World Food Day and the eightieth anniversary of FAO presented an opportunity to give back to nature.
In Armenia, people took this year’s motto literally, using their own hands to clean up along the shores of Lake Sevan as FAO in Armenia teamed up with the Clean Future for Lake Sevan project, implemented by the German Nature Conservation Union. Not only that, but the country’s year-long celebrations and campaigns culminated in a symbolic tree-planting ceremony at the Botanical Garden of Yerevan.
Eighty years, 80 trees: FAO offices in Hungary joined forces to replant an urban forest area in Budapest, planting 160 trees – 80 each for the FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia and the FAO Shared Services Centre – to commemorate this jubilee. Montenegro and North Macedonia had a similar idea, as both countries organized national World Food Day celebrations on 16 October in Podgorica and Skopje, with participants planting trees to commemorate FAO80.
Educating children, honouring youth achievements
A wide range of children and youth activities spread across the region, using the platforms of World Food Day and FAO80 to share knowledge about food safety, healthy nutrition and sustainable practices while also applauding youth initiatives in Europe and Central Asia.
In Albania, children participated in a week of educational activities to learn about food loss and waste and sustainability. At celebrations in Skopje, children’s art and beekeeping workshops engaged youth in topics of sustainability, biodiversity and food systems. Kazakhstan made healthy nutrition in schools a priority, with pilot activities held to improve school meals, promote healthy child nutrition and raise awareness among parents on improving children’s diets.
Throughout Serbia, a schools-based World Food Day learning programme was launched, with over 40 teachers participating from 21 different schools across the country, based on an FAO children’s activity book. In Dushanbe, Tajikistan, at an event titled “Food Faces for a Better World!”, children took part in creative activities using fruits, vegetables and flowers to promote healthy eating, while Türkiye partnered with the Bahçeşehir Basketball Sports Club for a dedicated children’s event combining sports, education and sustainability awareness.
A highlight of the FAO80 celebrations was the Young Farmers’ Recognition Initiative, launched at the 2025 Informal Consultation. The initiative showcased emerging agricultural leaders driving innovation and inclusion across the region. The ceremony honoured three finalists – from Kyrgyzstan, Spain and Ukraine – whose achievements in innovative farming, community building and empowerment demonstrate the essential role of young people in agrifood systems transformation. Their stories were also shared on the global stage during a high-level event at the World Food Forum held 10–17 October at FAO headquarters in Rome.
Food and agriculture are culture
Events in the region also underscored the importance of food and culinary culture.
In the Republic of Moldova, FAO80 and World Food Day celebrations highlighted local food heroes by supporting grape producers during the tenth edition of the National Table Grape Festival in the Cimișlia district. The September event offered an opportunity to showcase the dedication of Moldovan growers and the richness of the country’s grape-growing tradition. The country also marked FAO80 with a recognition ceremony for Farmer Field Schools. The event highlighted the achievements of FAO in agricultural resilience and honoured approximately 350 Farmer Field School members across 14 districts for their dedication to learning and knowledge sharing.
In Albania, communities came together through “Flavours of Tradition”, a celebration of local food varieties and culinary heritage. In Dushanbe in September, the Scientific and Practical Symposium “Hisori Sheep” promoted sustainable agriculture, agrotourism, traditional knowledge and rural development, with a photo exhibition on FAO achievements.
Tajikistan marked World Food Day 2025 in conjunction with its traditional Mehrgon harvest festival, celebrating under the global theme “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future”. This joint celebration also commemorated FAO’s anniversary by emphasizing collective efforts to foster sustainable, resilient and inclusive agrifood systems and creating a vibrant platform to honour the country’s rich agricultural traditions while promoting food security, sustainable development and global solidarity in the pursuit of a healthier, more food-secure future for everyone.
The tenth edition of the National Table Grape Festival in the Cimișlia district, the Republic of Moldova ©FAO/Dumitru Jomir (L) and the Mehrgon Festival in Dushanbe, Tajikistan ©FAO/Saiyod Saidov (R).
One of the year’s flagship regional initiatives, the FAO80 “Seeds of Change” exhibition, was launched during the 2025 Informal Consultations in May 2025 and later displayed at the Hungarian National Museum of Agriculture. Through four immersive thematic zones – Seeding Hope, Growing Together, Harvest and Enjoy, and Waste to Worth – visitors encountered stories of farmers, innovations, youth-led sustainability efforts, circular economy solutions, and the evolving food cultures of Europe and Central Asia.
Engagement and knowledge sharing
From civil society to the private sector, everyone has a role to play in transforming our agrifood systems. Engaging these many actors through expert conferences, panel discussions and university lectures is crucial to the sharing of knowledge and experiences to advance these efforts and highlight and recognize the achievements and challenges of various groups and sectors.
In Azerbaijan, FAO80 and World Food Day celebrations included an International Rural Women’s Day event, organized jointly with UN Women, that recognized the vital contributions of women to agriculture and rural development. Additionally, FAO partnered with the Agrarian Services Agency under the Ministry of Agriculture to host a Seed Conference that emphasized the importance of quality seed systems and sustainable agricultural practices.
Organized jointly by FAO and the State Food Security Agency and Institute for Food Safety, the conference “Together for Better Food and a Better Future” was a central World Food Day event in Bosnia and Herzegovina, bringing together experts, institutions, producers, inspection services, academia and FAO to address challenges and opportunities in food systems, food safety and standardization of domestic products.
Georgia concluded a year of festivities with its “Hand in Hand for Better Food and Better Future” event, celebrated with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture. The event featured a youth dialogue and the recognition of local food heroes for their distinguished efforts towards sustainable agrifood systems.
The Russian Federation marked World Food Day and FAO’s eightieth anniversary with strong student and academic engagement, including lectures, competitions and exhibitions at leading universities.
In Türkiye, the FAO Talks series was organized for the very first time within the framework of FAO80, with its inaugural event held during World Food Day. Implemented in collaboration with Migros, across five universities, the series brought together nearly 30 speakers and reached more than 1 000 university students, creating a platform for dialogue with young people on sustainable agrifood systems, healthy diets, biodiversity, women’s empowerment, cooperatives, digitalization, social impact and FAO’s work in Türkiye.
A joint FAO–UN Women conference “Rural Women in Ukraine: Strategies for Resilience and Renewal”, held on 15 October in Kyiv, Ukraine, served as the first national conference for the International Day of Rural Women. It featured advocacy sessions, exhibitions and networking opportunities and highlighted women’s leadership in agriculture.
Leaving our mark
FAO’s efforts to fight world hunger and all forms of malnutrition and to support agrifood system transformation are guided by the collective vision of the four betters: better nutrition, better production, a better environment and a better life, leaving no one behind. These efforts demand to be seen, noticed, heard and felt. All around the region, the Organization has made sure that this work is visible to let the world know why this matters so much.
FAO in Hungary launched a series of national initiatives, from pro bono airport campaigns to the decoration of Budapest’s iconic Margaret Bridge with FAO flags.
The twentieth edition of the World Food Day food convoy – organized with the Hungarian Food Bank Association – delivered 40 tonnes of food donations across the capital. ©FAO
In Kyrgyzstan, the nationwide celebration drew global attention, from organic fairs and public festivals to mountaineers raising the FAO flag at 7 134 metres. Cities lit up in FAO colours, and a national theatre performance honoured the country’s farmers. During the official celebration in North Macedonia, an FAO80 photo exhibition showcased eight decades of FAO action globally and in the country.
Georgia elaborated a commemorative postage stamp dedicated to FAO’s eightieth anniversary, honouring efforts to shape the country’s food systems. Serbia conducted a national pro bono billboard campaign in Belgrade. FAO in Tajikistan organized a mobile photo exhibition – a travelling exhibition highlighting eight decades of FAO’s impact on food security and sustainable agriculture. In Uzbekistan, a nationwide visibility campaign transformed metro stations, airports, buses, trains and supermarkets into FAO80 landmarks.
Regional celebrations with a global meaning
In 2025, FAO80 and World Food Day celebrations across Europe and Central Asia demonstrated not only the breadth of FAO’s partnerships but also the depth of its impact. From local schools to national parliaments, from young farmers to international leaders, participants echoed a shared message: Transforming agrifood systems requires solidarity, creativity and collective action.
As FAO steps into its next 80 years, the region has shown what is possible when communities join hands for better foods and a better future – for everyone.
