ROME, DECEMBER 5 – FAO will start selling local fruit and vegetable at its headquarters in Rome because supporting local farmers and food producers is of vital importance for the promotion of a healthy and sustainable diet. This is especially important in light of rising overweigh and obesity rates worldwide, which are mostly caused by the consumption of processed food items. The new initiative stems from an agreement between the UN agency and the Roman Agro-Food Center (CAR), which will be in charge of the local fruit and vegetable shop within FAO.
The agreement was signed on Wednesday by Qu Dongyu, Director General of FAO, and Fabio Massimo Pallottini, President of CAR, a major distribution centre for fresh agricultural products in Europe. CAR is the reference point of over 170 farmers in the region of Lazio and is a member of the World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM), a non-profit organization aimed at promoting informational exchange within the wholesale market, in the hope of optimizing its development, organization and administration.
The Director of FAO emphasized his commitment to supporting farmers and local food products. “We all need to improve our food habits and consume more fresh and seasonal fruit and vegetable,” he said, “and I know very well the high quality and diversity of Italian and Roman agricultural production. I am very proud of launching this small but significative initiative”. He furthermore observed that the FAO employees in Rome come from 180 different countries, which offers the opportunity to promote abroad products from Lazio.
Fabio Massimo Pallottini, Director General of CAR, added: “We are very proud of signing this agreement with FAO, which has always been the favorite interlocutor for our activities aimed at promoting local production: this initiative will give us the opportunity to further give value to the excellences of our territory, by promoting the fresh and tasty products which every day arrive to CAR. It also represents our commitment to a healthier and better informed nutrition”.
CAR will select farmers with the objective of making participation as inclusive as possible. The products will be available to over 3000 people, counting employees, service operators, delegates and visitors. The market will be arranged once every week, starting from the 11th of December 2019.
The agreement was signed one week after the High-Level Seminar organized by the Italian government on the importance of the Mediterranean diet and other traditional diets for the establishment of a food system respectful of the planet, of culture, and of people’s wellbeing.
The initiative is yet another example of FAO’s commitment to society and the environment. FAO donates -through catering service producers- unsold food items and meals to local food banks, and it works to reduce emissions, helping to integrate sustainability into daily activities like traveling. (SB@OnuItalia)
