China News Service, Beijing, October 15th. Question: How to protect the global dining table with innovative practices?
——Exclusive interview with Jean-Martin Bauer, Director of the Department of Food Security and Nutrition Analysis of the United Nations World Food Program
China News Service reporter Guan Yilun
Geographical conflicts, shipping obstructions, climate change... multiple factors are continuing to affect the global dining table, and more and more people may face severe food insecurity. "Hunger is a corrosive force." Jean-Martin Bauer, Director of the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Division of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), said that only by properly coping with various hunger-related problems can a society fully unleash its potential.
October 16 is World Food Day, and this year’s theme is “Innovation Now, Food Security for the Future”. What is the current status of global food security? What innovative practices can provide solutions to food security in the future? Jean-Martin Bauer accepted an exclusive interview with China News Service's "East-West Question" on the eve of World Food Day.
The interview transcript is summarized as follows:
China News Service reporter: What constraints have we faced in maintaining world food security this year? What is the current status of global food security?
Jean-Martin Bauer: Currently, the number of armed conflicts around the world has reached a new high since the end of World War II, and its impact on the food system has become increasingly serious.
Global trade has been hampered, and the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea and the Black Sea is restricting global trade in energy, fertilizer and grain. The latest data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) show that the global food price index rose to a new high in nearly four years in September. This shows that the global grain market is being affected by the situation in the above three places. Rising global food prices tend to further exacerbate food insecurity in fragile countries such as Sudan and Somalia, as a significant portion of the food consumed in these countries comes from imports.
Global climate conditions are also worrying. Currently, El Niño has caused severe drought in parts of Africa and Central America, and has also affected the Caribbean and parts of South Asia. This means reduced crop yields, available pasture area and available water resources for small-scale food producers.
The World Food Program predicted a few months ago that due to the El Niño phenomenon, at least 49 million new people around the world will face sudden food insecurity by the end of 2027. Therefore, next year will be a year full of serious challenges for those in conflict zones and now affected by El Niño and rising food prices.
Reporter from China News Service: The World Meteorological Organization recently reported that the El Niño phenomenon has definitely formed and is rapidly intensifying, and may become one of the strongest El Niño events since at least 1950. What challenges does this bring to WFP’s work? How will the WFP respond?
Jean-Martin Bauer: The new challenge is that this time the situation is more difficult to predict than in the past. Faced with such a rare major event, it is difficult for us to predict and plan accordingly for the future.
This year, the response to El Niño is also constrained by the reality that funding for humanitarian action is extremely limited. WFP's budget has been significantly reduced compared to three years ago, which means we must innovate to make better use of the limited resources we have. One way to do this is to act early and try to reach those we consider to be extremely vulnerable before a crisis erupts.
A few months ago, we jointly called for FAO to provide proactive action support to more than 8 million people in 22 countries to protect their livelihoods and food consumption, and to be more fully prepared for 2027. Data shows that for every $1 we invest in predictive projects, we can save at least $3 in disaster losses and post-disaster response costs.
Reporter from China News Service: The theme of this year’s World Food Day is “Innovation Now, Food Security for the Future”. What other innovative practices do you pay special attention to? How will they protect the global dining table?
Jean-Martin Bauer: I have been working in data analysis for a long time. In my opinion, artificial intelligence data analysis can not only help us carry out our work better, but also provide assistance to those engaged in food planting and processing, as well as insurance companies, transportation companies and other relevant participants in the food system. For the WFP, this technology can be used to optimize supply chains, predict food security risks and help us respond more quickly to crises.
We are in an era where we can understand changes in the situation in real time. The premise is that we can continue to invest in these data systems, not only continue to build relevant platforms, but also ensure that these platforms can continue to obtain the data they need.
Without data, there is no artificial intelligence. Humanitarian workers cannot respond to problems they cannot see. Therefore, we need to work with front-line personnel to design and develop models and advance related work. If we cannot continue to collect data from the field, the artificial intelligence model will be difficult to play an effective role, it will not be able to maintain strong timeliness, and the prediction effect will also decrease.
Looking at innovation from a broader perspective, I am particularly interested in how we can enhance the resilience of local food systems. In Haiti, we have promoted school feeding projects to purchase more food produced by local farmers, increasing the proportion of local purchases from about 20% to 80%. This project not only provides meals to approximately 500,000 children every day, but also helps strengthen the resilience of local communities and food systems.
If we have learned anything from the past few years, it is that global crises happen and we need to explore how we can rely on local economies to provide more affordable, nutritious food so that more people can benefit from it.
China News Service Reporter: During your time at the World Food Program, did you carry out any cooperation projects with China? Did this also bring you some innovative inspiration?
Jean-Martin Bauer: When I was working in Congo (Brazzaville), I had great cooperation with China. At that time, in Congo (Brazzaville), local people cultivated cassava, but they did not fully tap the potential of the cassava industry. Therefore, we decided to carry out work to improve the cassava value chain and are committed to introducing China's professional technology into Congo (Brazzaville).
I remember one day, a Chinese technician helped demonstrate a new product and used cassava flour to make bread and snacks. People were very surprised at that time because they thought it could only be made with wheat flour. But the practice of technicians shows that using cassava flour can also achieve very good results.
As a result, a person who received training from the Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences in Congo (Brazzaville) opened a factory to produce cassava flour and pasta made from cassava flour. There are many such examples. I felt at the time that this was a good way of cooperation, focusing on enterprise development, increasing people's income, and making full use of local crop resources.
Cooperation in Congo shows that China’s expertise in tropical crops is extremely valuable to other countries in the Global South that still face hunger. China has extensive knowledge, experience and resources, and we hope to continue our cooperation to promote China's expertise to these countries.
Knowledge exchange is never one-way. We hope that eventually all parties around the world will be able to communicate with each other, ensuring that best practices can be accessed and used by decision-makers around the world.
