World Food Day 2004. Biodiversity for food security

A report of the twenty-fourth World Food Day celebration held at the FAO regional office in Bangkok in commemoration of the Organization's founding in 1945. This year’s theme highlights the importance of conservation and management of biodiversity for food security. Loss of biodiversity is a threat to social and economic development as a whole. As genetic diversity erodes, our capacity to maintain and enhance crop, fish, forest and livestock productivity decreases along with our ability to respo nd to changing conditions. Sustainable ecosystems and agricultural practices need to be identified that can both feed people and protect the oceans, forests, prairies and other ecosystems that harbour biological diversity. Highlights of the day include a keynote speech on the theme of the celebration by Jim Peacock, CSIRO Plant Industry, Canberra and the presentation of five awards to outstanding farmers from Bhutan, China, Indonesia, Niue and Thailand.