Arnold Puech D’Alissac
Farmer and President, World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO)
Inaction in the face of the climate and food crises is not an option for farmers. They feel the responsibility to feed the world, but none can work alone.
The SOFI 2022 report describes a bleak scenario: we are moving backwards in our efforts to end hunger, food insecurity, and malnutrition in all its forms.
The recent conflict in Ukraine is worsening this tremendous context, with data showing the most urgent food crisis in human history is behind the door. According to the World Food Programme, the number of severely food insecure people is projected to be 345 million.
International food emergency
As farmers, we play a crucial role in advancing food security since it depends on our ability to keep working—even in emergency conditions—to ensure everyone, everywhere can access fresh, nutritious, and healthy food.
The socioeconomic consequences of the ongoing Ukraine crisis on production and trade disruptions are severely compromising an already difficult situation in agriculture worldwide, where the burden of climate action is on top.
The climate crisis knows no boundaries, and all the world’s farmers are impacted. I often say “The world is a village,” and these times of significant challenges prove just that.
Who will feed the world healthy and sustainably if not the farmers?
Responsibility of feeding the world
In the latest years, we have experienced increasingly extreme weather events that have put many of us on our knees, dramatically threatening our production and revenues.
When we hear that agriculture is a significant contributor to climate action and we should shift to other diets or eliminate specific sectors, there is still no answer to the question that immediately comes to mind: who will feed the world healthy and sustainably if not the farmers?
As farmers, we know we have to improve and shift to more sustainable and climate-resilient and nature-positive practices, and we are already doing a lot to contribute to climate action. We change how and what we farm and find practical solutions on the ground that are socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable, as experienced by The Climakers Alliance members.
None can work alone
We launch an urgent appeal to governments and other decision-makers to take food production seriously and unlock farmers’ capacity to feed the world and recover from shocks by improving their access to inputs, workers, water, seeds, fertilisers and finance. This is the key to succeed and will enable the next generations of farmers to transition to more sustainable agricultural practices.