In the text, world leaders also further “reaffirmed the necessity to promote, enhance and support more sustainable agriculture, including crops, livestock… that improves food security, eradicates hunger, and is economically viable, while conserving land, water, plant and animal genetic resources, biodiversity and ecosystems, and enhancing resilience to climate change and natural disasters”.This could be achieved through agricultural research and sharing know-how with livestock producers and other farmers.
The conference also heard calls to tackle food waste alongside production. “The sustainable development goals (expected to be agreed by 2015) must mean increased food security – getting food to the market and throwing away less food”, said Heikki Holmås, Norwegian development minister, during the Rio conference.
The resulting 49-page document ‘The Future We Want’, commits UN member states to achieving this goal “through improving pasture land and irrigation schemes in line with national policies, legislation, rules and regulations, enhanced sustainable water management systems, and efforts to eradicate and prevent the spread of animal diseases”. The final Rio+20 document also recognises that “the livelihoods of farmers including pastoralists and the health of livestock are intertwined”.
