Leveraging Agriculture for Improving Nutrition and Health
Encyclopedia
Leveraging Agriculture for Improving Nutrition and Health is the title of a global policy consultation and international conference to be held in New Delhi, India from 10-12 February, 2011, which will examine the linkages between work undertaken in the agriculture
, nutrition
and health
sectors. The conference is organized by the International Food Policy Research Institute
(IFPRI) with support from the Asian Development Bank
, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), the Indian Economic Association, IDRC, PepsiCo
, UK Department for International Development (DFID)
, United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
, Feed the Future Initiative, and The World Bank
.
and nutrients, but also sources of fuel
, medicine
, fiber
, and lumber
. Agriculture as an activity is also the source of livelihood and income for much of the world’s population, especially those living in rural areas. For this reason, agriculture has a considerable, positive impact on health and nutrition.
On the downside, agriculture has many negative effects on health. Agricultural production, trade
, and distribution can negatively effect the environment through pesticide and fertilizer runoff polluting the soil and ground water. According to WHO, around 1.1 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water.
Other negative effects include health and environmental risks to producers and laborers by being exposed to bad weather, handling chemical and biological products, working long hours, or using dangerous agricultural machinery.
Conversely, health and nutrition can also influence agriculture. Poor health affects farm productivity and household income, creating a vicious circle of poverty
, food insecurity, and ill health.
(MDGs) by 2015, the initiative hopes to consolidate information and build consensus for a joint action leveraging agriculture to improve nutrition and health.
The seminars in October and November 2010 were:
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, nutrition
Nutrition
Nutrition is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet....
and health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
sectors. The conference is organized by the International Food Policy Research Institute
International Food Policy Research Institute
The International Food Policy Research Institute is an international agricultural research center founded in the early 1970s to improve the understanding of national agricultural and food policies to promote the adoption of innovations in agricultural technology...
(IFPRI) with support from the Asian Development Bank
Asian Development Bank
The Asian Development Bank is a regional development bank established on 22 August 1966 to facilitate economic development of countries in Asia...
, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), the Indian Economic Association, IDRC, PepsiCo
PepsiCo
PepsiCo Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Purchase, New York, United States, with interests in the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of grain-based snack foods, beverages, and other products. PepsiCo was formed in 1965 with the merger of the Pepsi-Cola Company...
, UK Department for International Development (DFID)
Department for International Development
The Department For International Development is a United Kingdom government department with a Cabinet Minister in charge. It was separated from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1997. The goal of the department is "to promote sustainable development and eliminate world poverty". The current...
, United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
United States Agency for International Development
The United States Agency for International Development is the United States federal government agency primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. President John F. Kennedy created USAID in 1961 by executive order to implement development assistance programs in the areas...
, Feed the Future Initiative, and The World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
.
Linkages between Agriculture, Nutrition and Health
Agricultural products are not only sources of energyEnergy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
and nutrients, but also sources of fuel
Fuel
Fuel is any material that stores energy that can later be extracted to perform mechanical work in a controlled manner. Most fuels used by humans undergo combustion, a redox reaction in which a combustible substance releases energy after it ignites and reacts with the oxygen in the air...
, medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, fiber
Fiber
Fiber is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to lengths of thread.They are very important in the biology of both plants and animals, for holding tissues together....
, and lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
. Agriculture as an activity is also the source of livelihood and income for much of the world’s population, especially those living in rural areas. For this reason, agriculture has a considerable, positive impact on health and nutrition.
On the downside, agriculture has many negative effects on health. Agricultural production, trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
, and distribution can negatively effect the environment through pesticide and fertilizer runoff polluting the soil and ground water. According to WHO, around 1.1 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water.
Other negative effects include health and environmental risks to producers and laborers by being exposed to bad weather, handling chemical and biological products, working long hours, or using dangerous agricultural machinery.
Conversely, health and nutrition can also influence agriculture. Poor health affects farm productivity and household income, creating a vicious circle of poverty
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
, food insecurity, and ill health.
Rationale
The goal of the policy consultation is to overcome the isolation of policymakers and practitioners working in the agriculture, nutrition, and health sectors and to leverage the strong interactions and synergies among these sectors. In view of the problems many poor countries face to achieve the Millennium Development GoalsMillennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
(MDGs) by 2015, the initiative hopes to consolidate information and build consensus for a joint action leveraging agriculture to improve nutrition and health.
Process and Events
The process started in October and November 2010 with three seminars in Washington, DC. Besides the lead-in seminars and the main conference in February 2011 in India, the consultation also includes a youth writing contest in which young people between 14 and 18 years of age can submit thoughts and ideas on how to change agriculture to produce better food and lead to better health.The seminars in October and November 2010 were:
- 2010 Global Hunger IndexGlobal Hunger IndexThe Global Hunger Index is a multidimensional statistical tool used to describe the state of countries’ hunger situation. The GHI measures progress and failures in the global fight against hunger...
: Focus on the Crisis of Child Undernutrition on October 14, 2010 - Understanding the Interactions between Agriculture and Health on October 28, 2010
- Nourishing Plants and People: New Insights on How Fertilizers Affect Agriculture, Nutrition, and Health on November 19, 2010
Other Initiatives and Resources
- Agricultural Health Study sponsored by the National Institutes of HealthNational Institutes of HealthThe National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
- Agriculture & Health Research Platform
- The Agriculture and Public Health Gateway
- The Nutrition Collaborative Research Support Program (Nutrition CRSP)