World Food Day | 17 Oct 2020

Why in News

World Food Day is celebrated to commemorate the establishment of the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) on 16^th October 1945.

• The Prime Minister of India released a commemorative coin of Rs. 75 denomination to mark the 75^th Anniversary of the FAO.
• FAO is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.

Key Points

• About World Food Day:
  
  • It is observed annually on 16^th October to address the problem of global hunger.
  • It emphasises on the Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2) i.e. Zero Hunger.
  • Theme for 2020: “Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together.”
    
    • There has been a renewed focus on food, nutrition, health, immunity and sustainability due to the unprecedented challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
• 75^th Anniversary of FAO:
  
  • Over the years, FAO has helped to increase agricultural production and eradicate hunger all over the world, including India and has played an important role in increasing nutrition.
  • 2020's Nobel Peace Prize to the World Food Programme is also a major achievement for the FAO as the programme was started by FAO.
• Indian Context:
  
  • FAO has closely watched India's fight against malnutrition in the past decades but its scope had many constraints.
    
    • Due to reasons such as pregnancy at a young age, lack of education and information, inadequate access to drinking water, lack of cleanliness, etc. India is lagging behind in achieving the expected results of “malnutrition free India” by 2022, envisaged under the National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan).
  • FAO supported India's proposal to declare 2023 as the International Year of Millets.
    
    • The move will encourage intake of nutritious food, increase their availability further and benefit small and medium farmers who mostly grow coarse grains on their land where there is a problem of water and the land is not so fertile.

Highlighted Indian Initiatives

• Eat Right India and Fit India Movement along with Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Jal Jeevan Mission and other efforts will improve the health of Indians and heal the environment.
• Introduction of 17 new biofortified varieties of crops to overcome the shortcomings of the common variety of crops which lacks important micronutrients.
  
  • Example: MACS 4028 Wheat, Madhuban Gajar, etc.
• Increased ambit and effective implementation of the Food Security Act, 2013.
• Amendments to the APMC (agricultural produce market committee) Acts to make them more competitive.
• Steps to ensure that farmers get one and a half times the cost as Minimum Support Price (MSP), which along with the government procurement, is an important part of ensuring the country's food security.
• Development of a large network of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs).
• Amendments in the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 to deal with the issue of grain wastage in India.
• Government is making efforts to make India Trans Fat free by 2022, a year ahead of the World Health Organisation (WHO) target, in synergy with the vision of New India @75 (75 years of India’s independence).
  
  • Trans Fat is a food toxin present in Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (PHVOs) (e.g. vanaspati, shortening, margarine, etc.), baked and fried foods.
  • It is a major contributor to the rise in non-communicable diseases in India and also a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Eliminating CVD risk factor is especially relevant during Covid-19 as people with CVD are predisposed to have serious conditions having an impact on mortality.

Source: PIB