Advertise on podcast: FAO Podcasts

In this episode of The Work We Do, we are joined by Kaveh Zahedi, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment at FAO.     Kaveh discusses the central role of agriculture as part of the solution to climate change and biodiversity loss, and the challenges that El Niño and extreme heat pose to farmers and agrifood systems around the world. He also explores how countries can prepare for these growing pressures and build more resilient agrifood systems.  Kaveh also shares his own journey, from encountering environmental economics during his studies to a career at the United Nations, shaped by the connections between people, the economy and the environment.   Extreme Heat and Agriculture Report https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cd9394en  00:00 Agrifood systems, climate and biodiversity  05:00 Agrifood systems solutions  08:30 The climate finance gap  12:11 Carbon markets and climate finance  16:22 Investing in adaptation  19:40 Extreme heat and agriculture  22:49 Protecting farming communities  24:08 El Niño  27:37 The year of the triple COPs  34:22 The Paris Agreement and 1.5°C  36:18 Kaveh's journey    Hosted by Katrin Park  Produced by Eduardo De La Chica

In this episode, we speak with Corinna Hawkes, Director of Agrifood Systems and Food Safety Division. Corinna explains what it means to transform agrifood systems through a systems approach and why change requires looking beyond individual problems and solutions to the relationships, incentives, and power dynamics that shape our agrifood systems. She draws on examples from Brazil, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and New York City to show how evidence, governance, collaboration, and long-term thinking can help turn tradeoffs into wider benefits.   Hosted by Katrin Park  Produced by Eduardo De La Chica  00:43  What does transforming agrifood systems mean?  03:07  What is a "systems" approach?  03:59  Systems approach v. coordination  07:14  Marketing unhealthy foods to children  10:00  Compromises and aligning incentives  12:13  Navigating powerful interests  15:12  Short election cycles and long-term commitments  21:23  Monitoring transformation  24:32  Systems approach in Sierra Leone  27:05  Co-creating solutions in Tanzania  28:14  Public procurement in New York City  29:33  Corinna's journey  Transcript: https://www.fao.org/media/docs/aboutfaolibraries/transcripts/transcript_corinna-hawkes_260831.pdf

La innovación transforma vidas. Significa crear nuevas soluciones y compartir las que ya funcionan. Cuando el conocimiento y las soluciones llegan a quienes más las necesitan, las comunidades prosperan. Innovar hoy para nutrir mañana. Para más información visita www.fao.org/wfd

Инновации меняют жизнь. Это новые решения и распространение проверенных практик. Когда знания и проверенные решения доходят до людей, которые больше всего в них нуждаются, сообщества процветают. Внедряйте инновации уже сегодня. Чтобы прокормить мир завтра. Подробнее читайте на сайте www.fao.org/wfd

L'innovazione trasforma la vita. Significa creare nuove soluzioni e condividere quelle che funzionano. Quando sapere e soluzioni efficaci raggiungono chi ne ha più bisogno, le comunità possono crescere e prosperare. Innova oggi. Nutri il domani. Scopri di più su www.fao.org/wfd

L'innovation change les vies. C'est créer de nouvelles solutions et partager celles qui ont fait leurs preuves. Quand les connaissances et solutions efficaces parviennent à ceux qui en ont le plus besoin, les communautés prospèrent. Pour en savoir plus visitez www.fao.org/wfd

Innovation changes lives. It means creating new solutions and sharing proven ones. When knowledge and proven solutions reach the people who need them most, communities thrive. Innovate today. Nourish tomorrow. Visit www.fao.org/wfd to learn more.

创新，改变生活。它意味着探索新的解决方案，也意味着分享经过实践检验的经验。当知识和行之有效的解决方案惠及最需要的人群，社区方能焕发活力。创新当下 粮安未来 访问 www.fao.org/wfd，了解更多。

الابتكار يُحدث تحولًا في حياة الناس. ويعني ذلك ابتكار حلول جديدة وتبادل تلك التي أثبتت فعاليتها. عندما تصل المعارف والحلول المُجرَّبة إلى الأشخاص الأكثر احتياجًا إليها، تزدهر المجتمعات. ابتكار اليوم. غذاء الغد لمعرفة المزيد، يُرجى زيارة www.fao.org/wfd

In this special episode, Chief Economist Maximo Torero and David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics and Policy Division, unpack the key findings of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2026.  Global hunger has declined for the third consecutive year, but progress remains uneven across regions and is fragile. Meanwhile, a healthy diet is 25% more expensive than it was five years ago, and one third of the world's population cannot afford it.  The episode examines the structural factors driving the cost of healthy diets in different regions and how compound risks can affect their cost. It discusses how social protection, including school feeding programs, and investments in agrifood systems and trade can help make nutritious foods more accessible for everyone.   SOFI 2026: Understanding and Addressing the High Cost of a Healthy Diet  Transcript:  https://www.fao.org/media/docs/aboutfaolibraries/transcripts/sofi-2026-transcript_260721.pdf  00:00 Intro    01:05 Key statistics    03:15 The cost of healthy diets    06:45 Regional differences     09:10 The role of trade and region-specific interventions  11:05 Quinoa example   12:16 Africa's progress and challenges  20:22 Compound risks and building resilience

Global food markets are facing increasing pressure from conflict, climate extremes, economic uncertainty, and supply chain disruptions. Yet despite these shocks, global food markets often recover quickly and regain their equilibrium. But the resulting food price spikes can have severe consequences for food security, underscoring the importance of international cooperation.     In this episode of The Work We Do, we speak with FAO Senior Economist George Rapsomanikis and Economist Andrea Zimmermann about The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO) 2026. They examine how shocks affect food trade and its implications for food security, what makes global markets resilient, and why international cooperation matters more than ever.     1:40 Are there more shocks?  4:04 Different types of shocks  7:19 Characteristics of resilient markets  9:12 Can markets absorb shocks?  14:15 Ukraine, Hormuz, and trade risks  16:11 How fast does market recover?  20:20 Why food prices remain volatile  21:59 The role of policy and international cooperation  25:07 How can countries build resilience  26:26 Takeaway       The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO) 2026 report:   https://doi.org/10.4060/ce0337en

The Strait of Hormuz crisis is disrupting global energy and fertilizer markets. For the hundreds of millions already living in extreme poverty, the effects could be severe. In this episode, Ben Davis, Director of FAO's Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division, and Marco Knowles, Senior Policy Officer in the same division, make the case for social protection as a more effective response than the costly subsidies that governments are reaching for.   They challenge the idea that cash transfers are handouts, drawing on rigorous evidence showing that rural households invest them productively in agricultural inputs, education, and local economies. And they explain why targeted social assistance outperforms subsidies in both efficiency and reach.    Policy brief: The role of social protection in addressing the impacts of the 2026 conflict in the Middle East – Implications for poverty, food security and smallholder production  https://doi.org/10.4060/cd9363en   0:00 Introduction  0:36 Why social protection is urgent now  2:54 Why social protection systems must exist before crises  6:47 Cash transfers are investments  11:37 Social protection vs subsidies  17:44 The politics of cash transfers  25:18 Lessons from COVID-19  28:36 How to finance social protection  31:26 What countries should do now  33:31 Social protection beyond shock response  36:01 Country examples  39:05 What success could look like in 10 years

In this episode of The Work We Do, we speak with Manuel Barange, FAO Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, about the realities behind fisheries, aquaculture and the future of aquatic foods.i  Manuel breaks down the latest findings from The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2026, including the growing role of aquatic foods in global nutrition and food security, and discusses sustainability, fisheries management and how scientists measure fish stocks that cannot be directly counted.  He also reflects on his career, from marine biologist and scientific observer at sea to senior leader at FAO, and shares his advice for young professionals entering the sector.    Host :Katrin Park  Produced by Eduardo De La Chica  Copyright: FAO    00:00 Introduction  00:59 Are we running out of fish?  06:13 How fisheries are measured and managed  15:19 Sustainability, overexploitation and fish stocks  21:30 Fighting illegal fishing through the Port State Measures Agreement  31:19 Key findings from The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture  35:06 Aquaculture, Blue Transformation and the future of aquatic foods  48:34 Manuel's career and advice for young professionals

Sarah Cahill is the Secretary of Codex Alimentarius, the international body that develops the food standards behind much of what we eat, how it is labelled, and how it moves across borders. In this episode of The Work We Do, Sarah joins us in the Situation Room to discuss the past, present and future of Codex. We explore how Codex helped countries come together around scientific evidence to protect consumers, reduce foodborne risks and build trust in global food trade. Its work may be invisible to most people, but it sits behind everyday decisions: what appears on a food label, how contaminants are controlled, how additives are assessed, how hygiene rules are applied, and how countries agree that food is safe to trade. Katrin and Sarah also discuss the difficult process of reaching agreement between countries, why some standards take years to develop, and how science helps create common ground in a world of different regulations, risks and food systems. Finally, Sarah looks to the future: a warming planet, changing food safety hazards, water scarcity, seaweed, cell-based foods and the new questions regulators will need to answer. A conversation about the quiet global work that helps keep food safe, and why it shapes our lives more than we realise.

In this episode of The Work We Do, we speak with Lynnette Neufeld, Director of FAO's Food and Nutrition Division, about the complex realities behind today's nutrition challenges.  The conversation explores the double burden of malnutrition, where undernutrition and obesity can coexist within the same country, community, household or even individual. We also discuss why healthy diets costs more and the difficulties of advancing nutrition policies in contexts shaped by conflicting interests, commercial pressure and the need for stronger policy coherence.  Lynnette reflects on her years working on the evaluation of Mexico's landmark conditional cash transfer programme, the mentors and experiences in Latin America that shaped her path from young researcher to senior leader in international nutrition, and her vision for FAO's role in the nutrition agenda: helping shift the focus from simply feeding the world to enabling access to and consumption of healthy diets for all.  00:00 Evidence over interests  00:45 Intro  00:59 The double burden of malnutrition  04:44 Policy responses  08:20 Why unhealthy food is cheaper  12:54 Nutrition beyond health  14:41 Ultra-processed foods  19:08 Commercial pressure  22:39 The role of advertising  25:30 Governments, business and civil society  30:14 Healthy diets and misinformation  32:51 FAO's role in nutrition  39:02 Mexico's cash transfer programme  42:17 Evaluation and implementation  49:00 Latin America and mentorship  01:10 Healthy diets