10: EtymologyThe word pulse originates directly from the Latin puls meaning "thick gruel, porridge, mush.” 9: Pulses vs legumes, what’s the difference?The term "legume" refers to the plants whose fruit is enclosed in a pod. Pulses are a subgroup of the legume family, but the term “pulse” refers only to the dried seed. Dried beans, lentils and peas are the most commonly known and consumed types [...]

When thinking of this fruit we love so much what is the image that first pops to mind? Perhaps a green or a yellow with a greenish tint energy food? Or maybe a banana packaged in a perfect shade of yellow? If that’s the case, then it is time to broaden that perspective. Say hello to the Fe’i banana! This traditional [...]

E-learning was quite the buzzword a couple of decades ago – then when the internet started in earnest it became even more so. Today e-learning is mainstreamed in many organization, including FAO with more than 400 000 learners taking advantage of FAO’s offerings. FAO’s e-learning center offers free interactive courses – in English, French and Spanish - on topics ranging [...]

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Pulses are being celebrated in 2016 all over the world since they are nutritious, suited for use in a variety of dishes, easy on the budget  and good for the health of the soil. From food security and nutrition to ensuring biodiversity and mitigating the effects of climate change, pulses contribute to sustainable development. Here is how.  1.     Nutritional benefits of pulses   Pulses [...]

Radio culture is gaining more and more ground as millions of listeners take to audio podcasts as a convenient and accessible way to learn new information.  Which is why FAO is stepping up into the medium to bring you insights into some of the issues concerning food and agriculture worldwide. Here are the first seven audio offerings of FAO’s new podcast [...]

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of drones? Widely known originally for their use for military purposes, increasingly, researchers, aid organizations, governments and private companies are exploring the many ways drones can be used for good. Otherwise known as unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs, these flying robots have started to transform various industries, including [...]

What do cucumbers, mustard, almonds and alfalfa have in common? On the surface it appears to be very little. However, there is one thing they do share: They all owe their existence to the service of bees. There is more to the tiny striped helper than sweet honey and a painful sting. For millennia, it has carried out its service [...]

Smallholders and people living in rural areas in Africa grow a huge variety of edible plants other than rice, wheat or maize. These crops, including the African yam bean, have long been neglected although they represent an excellent alternative food supplement to most diets. Grown in pockets of tropical Central, West and East Africa, the African yam bean (Sphenostylis stenocarpa) [...]

Banana split, banana muffins, banana bread, banana pudding, banana pancakes – whether plain, cooked, baked or fried, bananas are among the most widely consumed fruits on the planet. However, how much do we really know about this most produced and exported fruit? Here are 11 interesting facts you should know about bananas: Based on written references discovered in Sanskrit around the year [...]

For the first time in history, more than 50 percent of the world’s population now lives in towns and cities. By 2050, this number is expected to increase to 66 percent. The shift from rural to urban areas, mainly in Africa and Asia, is due to poverty and related socio-economic factors.   For the most part, the rapid expansion of cities [...]

Cash transfer programmes – regular money payments to poor households - aim to reduce poverty, promote sustainable livelihoods and increase production in the developing world. During the past decade, an increasing number of governments in sub-Saharan Africa have launched cash transfer programmes that target the most vulnerable groups, including subsistence farmers, people with disabilities and HIV/AIDS, as well as families [...]

Every year, FAO publishes a number of major ‘State of the World’ reports containing balanced, science-based reviews of issues related to food, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and natural resources. The reports also cover vital areas such as food production and hunger alleviation, which are at the heart of FAO’s work. With close to 800 million people currently chronically undernourished and an extra [...]

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Over the past years, we have often been reminded that we must leave no one behind as we strive to cement our plans for a sustainable future. Most recent data indicate that many of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have achieved undernourishment levels of less than 5 percent. Good governance is perhaps the most essential factor in increasing food [...]

Food waste has become a dangerous habit: buying more than we need at supermarkets, letting fruits and vegetables spoil at home or ordering more than we can eat at restaurants.  Each year, about 1/3 of the food we produce globally is lost or wasted. In developing countries, a large part of this food (40%) is lost at the harvest or processing [...]

Migration has always existed. It has been a means to reunite with family, to find better jobs, to have a new experience or to start a better life. In 2015, the number of people migrating was up to 1 out of every 7 people in the world.   When it is a choice, migration can be a good way to spread [...]

FAO plays an important and unique role as a neutral forum, offering unbiased, high-quality information across all areas related to food, agriculture and sustainable natural resources management. With over 500 new publications a year, FAO provides robust technical knowledge and global statistics. By broadly disseminating timely, accurate and compelling information, FAO informs the work of practitioners, researchers and policy-makers, while raising [...]

Forests are one of nature’s great providers. A source of water and food security, they also give us everything from paper and medicine to renewable energy, low-tech air conditioning and air cleansers. They also protect and enrich biodiversity and are a major tool in the fight against climate change. Ask several people what a forest is and their answers will probably [...]

An estimated 700 000 people die each year from antimicrobial resistant (AMR) infections and an untold number of sick animals may not be responding to treatment. AMR is a significant global threat to public health, food safety and security, as well as to livelihoods, animal production and economic and agricultural development. The intensification of agricultural production has led to a rising use of antimicrobials – a use that is expected to more than double by 2030. Antimicrobials are important for the treatment of animal and plant diseases [...]

The terraced hills of the Andes, the rice paddies of southern China, the oasis systems of the Maghreb: agriculture molds landscapes and places. Agriculture also shapes livelihoods, lifestyles, food traditions and cultures. What kind of plants grow or can’t grow, how they are harvested and what people eat define people’s lives.  Because our natural resources are under great strain, we need [...]

Hassan Al-Hassan, a Syrian farmer known to locals as Abu Hasan, remembers how difficult it had been in the past few years in the village of al-Rabeha in the southern governorate of Homs. “Due to lack of water, we could hardly produce anything,” said Abu Hasan. FAO is helping to restore access to water for over 40 000 families – about [...]

Schools are an ideal setting for teaching basic skills in food, nutrition and health. In many communities, they may be the only place where children acquire these important life skills. Primary schools, in particular, are suitable vehicles for nutrition education. They not only influence children but also target girls, who tend to leave schools earlier. Nutrition lessons can be simple, [...]

It is often said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But when it comes to fruit and vegetables, one third of them never even make it to our grocery store shelves because they are rejected on their way from the farm to the store. While supermarkets have a part to play in this, we must also examine [...]

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After days and days of heavy rain, Hernan Espinoza looked out over his fields. They were waterlogged, some completely destroyed. He was like many others in his small community of Tambogrande on Peru’s northern coast: grappling with devastation, their farms and fields severely damaged by flooding, storms and landslides, caused by the El Niño Costero (coastal) phenomenon that pounded the [...]

When one ponders the vast stretches of wheat being culled from the swaths of farmland in the Ukraine the mind doesn’t quickly leap to the thought of a pastry shop in Cairo. Or a bakery in Indonesia.  

“It’s a bee!” someone screams as they jump up from their picnic blanket, knocking over their apple juice and flailing their arms, trying to get away from this flying creature. Does this scene sound familiar?  

One person has curly hair; one person has straight hair. One person tans, another burns. One person can curl her lip, another can’t. This is all because of our genes and the differences in them. Diversity. It is the spice of life.  

Biodiversity may sound complicated, but it’s a fairly simple concept: the existence of many different types of plants and animals makes the world a healthier and more productive place. A mix of genetics, species and habitats allows Earth’s ecosystems to keep up with challenges like population growth and climate change. Biodiversity is important to us because it plays a crucial [...]

Oceans cover 70 percent of our planet. But did you know that 40 percent of the earth’s surface is covered by what is known as our common oceans?  

Where would you find the world’s largest recreation center and the most natural supermarket? Forests wouldn’t have been your first answer, would it? That’s the thing about forests. They keep secrets.

What does William Shakespeare have in common with Mexican beekeeper Francisco Lenin Bartolo Reyes? Both men understand the importance of the honey bee, a small but invaluable ally of the human race.

Imagine living in one of the driest areas on the planet. What little rain there is falls over the space of a few months, yielding around 700 mm in total each year. A population of 1.2 million has to survive on 65 percent less water than the rest of their compatriots, on a traditional staple diet of corn and beans. [...]

Diets vary greatly from place to place based on food availability, eating habits and culture. Yet, when it comes to food, there is a lot that we know about what is and what is not good for us and this is true no matter where we live. Societal changes, however, are making these choices more complicated. While many countries are [...]

Youth around the world are increasingly turning away from agriculture. Traditionally requiring tough manual labour and offering low wages, agriculture does not often appeal to new generations who generally prefer to try their luck finding jobs in cities.  

Four years into the 2030 Agenda, there is still a large gap in data to understand where the world stands in achieving its shared goals, the SDGs. To support [...]

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FAO will attend the fourth Annual Strategic Consultation with the Government of Japan on Tuesday 21 January 2020, in Tokyo, Japan. The objective is to review the progress of [...]

Brush up on hot topics with these five FAO titles. Browse through the language versions using the top right-hand language bar to discover different titles.

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Buy fresh and seasonal produce at the Farmers’ Market on
Wednesday 26 February from 12.00 – 16.00 hours, and be sure to visit the [...]

The Farmers’ Market has been postponed for Friday 6 March and until further notice.