How Smart Food can transform food, combat malnutrition and hunger

Prof Pingali and Ms Diama at the congress. Photo: ICRISAT
This topic was introduced to participants during the 4th International Congress Hidden Hunger at the University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany, on 28 February. The event was a platform for dialogue between scientists, policy-makers, representatives of non-governmental organizations and the private sector. Objectives of the meeting were to review available evidence on the double burden of malnutrition, discuss new research findings on underlying causes and consequences and develop innovative strategies to combat malnutrition.
This year the forum also emphasized the need to look at nutrition as a system issue, to adopt a broader multidisciplinary approach by understanding the connection between climate change and malnutrition. This meeting was attended by Professor Prabhu Pingali, Director, Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition (TCI) and ICRISAT’s incoming board member. Ms Agathe Diama, Head Regional Information, West and Central Africa, and Smart Food Coordinator for the region presented the Smart Food initiative at the congress.