Trees, plants, microorganisms, insects, birds, mangroves and corals are disappearing. The first global Fao report on the state of biodiversity worldwide.
Biodiversity, which forms the foundation of our agriculture and food systems, is disappearing. This puts at risk our ability to produce the food needed to feed humanity, to guarantee everyone a livelihood, to safeguard health and to protect the environment. With potentially irreversible consequences.
This is explained in the first global report on the State of Biodiversity, published on 22 February by the FAO, which underlines that "biodiversity for food and agriculture refers to all plants and animals (wild and domesticated) that provide food, feed, fuel and fibre. And also the myriad of organisms that support food production through ecosystem services (known as 'associated biodiversity')."
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"This includes – the document from the United Nations agency continues – all plants, animals and microorganisms (insects, bats, birds, mangroves, corals, marine plants, earthworms, fungi, bacteria) that keep soils fertile, pollinate plants, purify water and air, keep fish and forest resources healthy, and help combat pests and diseases affecting crops and livestock." A heritage that "once lost can never be recovered."
Even today, examples of what the decline in biodiversity can produce are not hard to find. "In Gambia, enormous losses of wild food have forced communities to turn to alternatives, often industrially produced foods, to supplement their diets. In Egypt, rising temperatures are causing fish species ranges to shift northward, with impacts on production. In the Amazonian forests of Peru, climate change is expected to bring about 'savannisation', with negative impacts on the supply of wild foods."
In more general terms, the FAO highlights in particular the reduction observed in crops, the growing number of animal species facing extinction and the over-exploitation of fish resources. Because it takes only a few changes to produce disasters: "Of the approximately 6,000 plant species cultivated for food, fewer than 200 make a substantial contribution to global food production. And just nine account for 66% of total production."
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The analysis was conducted across 91 countries and showed that the greatest number of declining wild food species is found in countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, followed by those of Asia-Pacific and Africa. Birds, bats and insects are "severely threatened," as are "wild pollinators such as bees and butterflies." Meanwhile, "pastures, mangroves, seagrass meadows, coral reefs and wetlands in general are also in rapid decline."
A particularly alarming situation, as highlighted by the FAO Director-General, José Graziano da Silva: "Biodiversity is fundamental to safeguarding global food security. It underpins healthy and nutritious diets and strengthens rural livelihoods and the resilience of people and communities."
"Less biodiversity – the official added – means that plants and animals are more vulnerable. This, combined with our growing dependence on an ever-smaller number of species to feed ourselves, is pushing our already fragile food security to the brink of collapse." It is therefore necessary to adopt "sustainable" systems capable of "responding to the growing challenges of climate change."
To this end, the report identifies the key drivers of biodiversity loss: "Changes in land and water use and management, followed by pollution, over-exploitation, population growth and urbanisation." But also "the alteration and loss of ecosystems, hunting and poaching in Africa, deforestation and intensive farming in Europe and Central Asia; pests, diseases and invasive species in Latin America and the Caribbean."
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In an attempt to reverse course, the FAO notes that "most countries have adopted regulatory frameworks at the legal, policy and institutional level for the sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity." However, "these have often proved inadequate or insufficient." It is for this reason that "governments and the international community must do more to strengthen legislation, create incentives and benefit-sharing measures."
Furthermore, knowledge on the subject needs to be improved and information disseminated. Public authorities can exert pressure on private companies. And consumers can favour, in their purchasing choices, "products grown in a sustainable manner or boycott foods considered unsustainable."
