SfL Food Systems Summit Dialogue #1

A SfL Event
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Farmers, ranchers and growers

Boosting Nature Positive Agricultural Solutions: U.S. Farmer, Rancher, Grower Perspectives

As documented in the fourth annual Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC 2020), the number of people across the globe that are suffering from hunger and malnutrition is rising. In response to these and other challenges, UN Secretary-General António Guterres will convene a Food Systems Summit (FSS) this fall in New York to raise awareness and secure global commitments for actions that transform food systems to resolve hunger and reduce diet-related disease. Guterres is calling for collective action to radically change the way our food is produced, processed and consumed. This will be the first global food summit in 25 years, and stakeholders across the globe are weighing in with their suggestions for changes to our food systems.

Of critical importance in any discussion about the future of food systems are the voices of farmers and ranchers – the producers who make the investments, incur the risks and do the real work to grow the food that the world needs. To help ensure that farmer and rancher experiences, insight and recommendations are elevated in these discussions, Solutions from the Land and a group of collaborating agricultural organizations held a virtual Food Systems Summit Dialogue.

Objective

Our objective for the dialogue was to engage a cross section of farmers and ranchers in a discussion about topics being considered under FSS Action Track 3: Boost Nature Positive Production at Sufficient Scale. While food and agriculture may differ by region and locale, U.S. producers face challenges relating to economic, environment, and social sustainability and are equally invested in the Summit vision and objectives. There is no one size fits all in agriculture. Each farm, notwithstanding its size, type or production style, plays a role – and each is interconnected through our food systems.

Event Takeaways

There was no shortage of diverse, committed farmers and their partners who stepped up to participate in the dialogue. Together, they affirmed once again: agriculture is not broken, and that with innovation, indigenous learning and further advancements in technology, farmers will continue to improve efficiency, sustainably intensify production, enhance the resilience of their operations and simultaneously deliver solutions to global environmental, economic, social and quality of life goals. The farmer voice is essential in development of food and agriculture policy. Food system success is inseparable from farmer success. Farmers make the investments and bear the risks of each year’s production. They are directly responsible for food products and are often the ones affected by hunger and malnutrition worldwide. These points lead to a singular conclusion: farmer success equals food system success. The lack of an organized “farmer engagement platform” in the FSS is a serious challenge, that SfL and other participants hope to address by creating a table where farmers across the world can come together to contribute and learn from each other. Thank you to everyone who has stepped up to join that conversation thus far!

How Else Can I Help?

Farmers, ranchers and growers are getting active in this space! The more we show up and share our ideas, the better chance we have of having them gain traction and be endorsed by other participants. Now that the dialogue is over, try some of these other ways to engage in SfL’s Food Systems Summit work…

Our Vision

An Agricultural Renaissance, led by innovative and entrepreneurial farmers, ranchers and foresters constructing sustainable, profitable and resilient systems that lay the foundation for a world of abundance on many scales capable of producing nutritious food, feed, fiber, clean energy, healthy ecosystems, quality livelihoods, and strong rural economies.