CII B20 Global Dialogue on Food Systems Transformation

“The global food systems needs to be reshaped to be more productive, more inclusive of poor and marginalized populations, environmentally sustainable and resilient, and should deliver healthy and nutritious diets to all” said Ms Vinita Bali, the Chairperson of CII National Committee on Nutrition at the CII B20 Global Dialogue on Food Systems Transformation held in New Delhi today.

Mr Stefanos Fotiou, Director, Food Systems Coordination Hub in a video address said that sustainable food systems are critical for eradication of poverty, hunger and malnutrition, for sustainable production and consumption, for natural resources to regenerate and to provide next generation with a healthy future.

Being the B20 secretariat, for India’s G20 presidency, CII organised the Global Dialogue on Food Systems Transformation with . The objective was to find pathways towards implementing food systems transformation to ensure sustainable production, food security and nutrition for the global family and to outline the priorities and defining actionable goals under the B20 umbrella.

Given the diverse yet interconnected aspects of food systems, the dialogue was spread over two days. The first day (April 20th) saw multiple sessions around the themes of People, Planet and Prosperity, which looked at aspects of nutrition, food safety, clean food systems, agroecological practices, inclusive businesses, and digital technologies. The second day (April 21st) had three plenary sessions lined up on people, planet and prosperity.

“Globally significant number of people have micronutrient deficiencies and can't afford healthy diets. Solutions such as biodiversity, supplements and fortification are needed to address it” said Mr Penjani Mkambula, Global Program Lead for Food Fortification at the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). GAIN was one of the technical partners at the Dialogue along with World Wildlife Fund (WWF), GIZ and Food Futures Foundation.

Speaking on the Theme of ‘People’ at the Opening Session, Ms. Vinita Bali, the Chairperson of CII National Committee on Nutrition emphasized the importance for adolescent nutrition in early childhood. According to her, the issue of nutrition is critical with respect to the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the role each stakeholder will play will be key in making food nutritious.

Mr Salil Singhal, Chairman CII Taskforce on Agro Chemicals and Chairman Emeritus, PI Industries speaking on the Theme of ‘Planet’ asserted that Global food systems account for 80 percent of freshwater consumption, contributes to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions and yet 70 percent of produce is wasted across the value chains. He advised the need to take a food systems approach to tackle this.

Covering the Theme of ‘Prosperity’ Mr Sivakumar, Chairman, CII Core Group on AgTech and Group Head, Agri & IT Businesses, ITC Ltd said that, “The need to use resources efficiently as this goes back to the producer. An evolving carbon markets will further help supplement farmers’ incomes”.

Mr Brent Loken, the Global Food Lead Scientist at WWF in his address said that “Sustainable food consumption has significant health benefits and upto 11 million adults can be saved annually with reduction in global disease burden”.

The Global Dialogue saw a participation from more than 30 countries including the major G20 countries. The sessions featured some very distinguished speakers from the government, private sector and international speakers.

21 April 2023

New Delhi