World Food Day

World Food Day
World Food Day 2009
Observed by	All UN Member States
Date	16 October

World Food Day is celebrated every year around the world on 16 October in honor of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945. It is also the Food Engineer day.

The World Food Day theme for 2011 is "Food prices - from crisis to stability".

Origins

U.S. National Committee for World Food Day offices in Washington, D.C.

World Food Day (WFD) was established by FAO's Member Countries at the Organization's 20th General Conference in November 1979. The Hungarian Delegation, led by the former Hungarian Minister of Agriculture and Food, Dr. Pál Romány has played an active role at the 20th Session of the FAO Conference and suggested the idea of celebrating the WFD worldwide. It has since been observed every year in more than 150 countries, raising awareness of the issues behind poverty and hunger.

Themes

Since 1981, World Food Day has adopted a different theme each year, in order to highlight areas needed for action and provide a common focus.

Most of the themes revolve around agriculture because only investment in agriculture – together with support for education and health – will turn this situation around. The bulk of that investment will have to come from the private sector, with public investment playing a crucial role, especially in view of its facilitating and stimulating effect on private investment.

In spite of the importance of agriculture as the driving force in the economies of many developing countries, this vital sector is frequently starved of investment. In particular, foreign aid to agriculture has shown marked declines over the past 20 years.

Events

Events take place in over 150 countries to mark World Food Day. Below are example of events held across the world in recent years.

United States of America

World Food Day has been a tradition in the USA since the first World Food Day in 1981. In the United States the endeavor is sponsored by 450 national, private voluntary organizations. One example for World Food Day events in 2011 is the World Food Day Sunday Dinners that Oxfam America is sponsoring in collaboration with several other non profits. Emeritus Archbishop Desmond Tutu and author Francis Moore Lappe have teamed up with Oxfam America to promote World Food Day Sunday Dinners. The Iowa Hunger Summit has been held on or near World Food Day since 2007, and is organized by the World Food Prize in conjunction with their annual symposium in Des Moines, Iowa.

Europe

In Italy, ministries, universities, research agencies, international agencies and NGOs have organized many conferences as well as exhibitions and symposia. The Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Policies organized a meeting which focused on women's rights in rural areas in 2005.

In Germany, the Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture have all become involved via press conferences. Spanish television has been active in broadcasting events. FAO Goodwill Ambassador – Spanish soccer star Raul – has taken part in events and helped highlight food-security issues across his country.

The UK Food Group has also been active through conferences and media broadcasts. In the emerging economies of Eastern Europe – i.e., Albania, Armenia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Georgia, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldova, Serbia and Montenegro, and Slovak Republic – a variety of activities have been held.

In Hungary, renowned experts have given presentations in the Hungarian Agricultural Museum and FAO, and WFD medals have been awarded to well-known Hungarian experts by the FAO Sub-Regional Representative.

On behalf of the Holy See, Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI have sent an annual message for food producers and consumers on World Food Day.

Africa

Angola celebrated WFD in 2005 through the 4th Forum on Rural Women, while in Burundi the second Vice-President planted potatoes to provide a symbolic example about food production. In Central African Republic, the President of the Republic has inaugurated a bridge at Boda to coincide with World Food Day, making the agricultural production area more accessible.

In Chad, thousands of people have attended debates, conferences and activities including theatre, films, folk dance, visits to project sites and visits by agricultural companies. In Ghana, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has hosted a food security conference, while Namibia has run an awareness campaign through national media.

Egypt has hosted a Forum on nutrition issues. Morocco and Tunisia have held seminars and exhibitions.

Asia

The Government of Bangladesh has been involved through organizing a food festival; in China in 2005, celebrations were organized in Qujing City, where numerous ethnical minorities live, by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Government of Qujing City, with the participation of a number of senior officials of the Government.

In the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, seminars have been held and visits made to various project sites. The Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia has in the past organized a major Food Expo in Bandung, West Java, while a Farmers' and Fishermen's Workshop of NGOs was held in Bali.

In Armenia, staff from the Ministry of Agriculture, non-governmental organizations, Armenian State Agriculture University, the donor community, international organizations, and the mass media have participated in the World Food Day ceremony. In Afghanistan, representatives of Ministries, embassies, UN agencies, International Financial Organizations, National and International NGOs and FAO staff have attended the World Food Day ceremony.

In Cyprus, special ceremonies have been organized in primary and secondary schools, where teachers explained the significance of World Food Day.

Latin America

In Chile, exhibitions of indigenous food products have been prepared by local communities. In Argentina, senior officials of the Government, academics, international organizations and the press have participated in the main ceremony. In Mexico in 2005, a National Campaign for a "Mexico Without Hunger" was held, with the involvement and support of civil society and students. In Cuba, producers have been able to exchange views and experiences at an agricultural fair. The media strongly supports awareness campaigns on World Food Day; for example in Venezuela there has been national coverage of events.

See also

• Food price crisis
• Food security
• World Food Prize

External links

• World Food Day
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• World Summit on Food Security 2009
• World Food Programme
• Child In Need Institute agency working in India to combat malnutrition
• International Fund for Agricultural Development
• International Alliance Against Hunger
• Friends of the World Food Program United States agency helping raise funds and awareness about global hunger

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2010	United against Hunger
2009	Achieving food security in times of crisis
2008	World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy
2007	The Right to Food
2006	Investing in agriculture for food security
2005	Agriculture and intercultural dialogue
2004	Biodiversity for Food Security
2003	Working together for an International Alliance Against Hunger
2002	Water: source of Food Security
2001	Fight Hunger to Reduce Poverty
2000	A Millennium Free from Hunger
1999	Youth Against Hunger
1998	Women Feed the World
1997	Investing in Food Security
1996	Fighting Hunger and Malnutrition
1995	Food For All
1994	Water For Life
1993	Harvesting Nature's Diversity
1992	Food and Nutrition
1991	Trees for Life
1990	Food for the Future
1989	Food and the Environment
1988	Rural Youth
1987	Small Farmers
1986	Fishermen and Fishing Communities
1985	Rural Poverty
1984	Women in Agriculture
1983	Food Security
1982	Food Comes First
1981	Food Comes First