Forests have an undervalued potential for contributing to food security and nutrition. What is often perceived as a trade-off between forests and agricultural production, is in reality a mutually dependent relationship with forests and trees contributing to the different dimensions of food security and nutrition (availability, accessibility, utilization and stability). Through the provision of i) nutritious foods, ii) bioenergy for cooking, iii) income and sources of employment and iv) ecosystem services; forests, trees and agroforestry are indivisible from Food and Nutrition Security.
Barbara Stadlmayr of the Institute for Development Research co-authored the new Policy Brief by the CGIAR Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry. It provides a synthesis of knowledge and proposes game-changing solutions for UN Food Systems Summit 2021.
Photo: Nanang Sujana/CIFOR