33 Facts About FAO

FAO is governed by a biennial conference representing each member country and the European Union, which elects a 49-member executive council.

The First Session of the FAO Conference was held immediately afterward in the Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City from 16 October to 1 November 1945.

FAO launched what would become the FAO Money and Medals Programme in 1968.

FAO issued collector art medals in various series to bring attention to FAO's goals and missions.

In 1974, in response to famine in Africa, the FAO convened the first World Food Summit to address widespread hunger, malnutrition, and food insecurity.

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In 1951, the FAO's headquarters were moved from Washington, D C, United States, to Rome, Italy.

FAO is composed of eight departments: Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Climate, Biodiversity, Land and Water Department, Economic and Social Development, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Forestry, Corporate Services and Technical Cooperation and Programme Management.

FAO has outlined the following priorities in its fight against hunger.

In 1996, FAO organized the World Food Summit, attended by 112 Heads or Deputy Heads of State and Government.

In 1997, FAO launched TeleFood, a campaign of concerts, sporting events and other activities to harness the power of media, celebrities and concerned citizens to help fighting hunger.

In December 2007, FAO launched its Initiative on Soaring Food Prices to help small producers raise their output and earn more.

Under the initiative, FAO contributed to the work of the UN High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Crisis, which produced the Comprehensive Framework for Action.

The aid package falls under the EU's €1 billion Food Facility, set up with the UN Secretary-General's High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Crisis and FAO to focus on programmes that will have a quick but lasting impact on food security.

FAO is receiving a total of around €200 million for work in 25 countries, of which €15.

FAO created the International Plant Protection Convention or IPPC in 1952.

FAO is depositary of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, called Plant Treaty, Seed Treaty or ITPGRFA, entered into force on 29 June 2004.

FAO established an Emergency Prevention System for Transboundary Animal and Plant Pests and Diseases in 1994, focusing on the control of diseases like rinderpest, foot-and-mouth disease and avian flu by helping governments coordinate their responses.

FAO serves as a neutral forum for policy dialogue, as a reliable source of information on forests and trees and as a provider of expert technical assistance and advice to help countries develop and implement effective national forest programmes.

FAO is both a global clearinghouse for information on forests and forest resources and a facilitator that helps building countries' local capacity to provide their own national forest data.

In collaboration with member countries, FAO carries out periodic global assessments of forest resources, which are made available through reports, publications and the FAO's Web site.

Every two years, FAO publishes the State of the World's Forests, a major report covering current and emerging issues facing the forestry sector.

Since 1947, FAO has published the FAO Yearbook of Forest Products, a compilation of statistical data on basic forest products from over 100 countries and territories of the world.

FAO is an official sponsor of International Day of Forests, on 21 March each year, as proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on 28 November 2012.

Every year, FAO publishes a number of major 'State of the World' reports related to food, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and natural resources.

Edouard Saouma, the Director-General of FAO, was criticized in Graham Hancock's book Lords of Poverty, published in 1989.

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The letter complained that organizations representing the interests of farmers had not been consulted, that FAO was siding with the biotechnology industry and, consequently, that the report "raises serious questions about the independence and intellectual integrity of an important United Nations agency".

FAO acknowledged that "biotechnology research is essentially driven by the world's top ten transnational corporations" and "the private sector protects its results with patents in order to earn from its investment and it concentrates on products that have no relevance to food in developing countries".

Meanwhile, hundreds of FAO staff signed a petition in support of the IEE recommendations, calling for "a radical shift in management culture and spirit, depoliticization of appointments, restoration of trust between staff and management, [and] setting strategic priorities of the organization".

In May 2008, while talking about the ongoing world food crisis, President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal expressed the opinion that FAO was "a waste of money" and that "we must scrap it".

In May 2008, while talking about the ongoing world food crisis, President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal expressed the opinion that FAO was "a waste of money" and that "we must scrap it".

In June 2008, the FAO sponsored the High-Level Conference on World Food Security.

FAO noted that contacts between Management and the staff bodies were becoming less and less frequent.

In July 2020, the FAO Council approved a series of measures proposed by its Director-General Qu Dongyu to modernize the organisation and make it more efficient and effective.