Alessandra Daniele The cooperation agreement between the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Divulga with the collaboration of the WorldFMC, for the development of a methodological model for the study of farmers markets became operative.
On Monday, 12 February at the Coalition’s headquarters, expert practitioners and researchers of food systems representing six continents, met in a day-long technical meeting aimed at defining the research questions, conceptual framework, and methodology for the analysis of farmers markets in the context of sustainable agri-food systems. The group included experts from Tanzania and Ghana, the countries in which this study will take place.
The funds provided by FAO under this Agreement will be spent on this starting component of FAO’s Global Network of Farmers Markets. Initiative, whose aim is to increase access of small-scale farmers to markets, develop mechanisms to value local products, and link farmers with consumers.
The initiative focuses on three axes: 1) research and analysis to explore different models of farmers markets and their contribution to sustainable agri-food systems at global and national level; 2) strengthening of the WorldFMC through networking and outreach; 3) knowledge generation through the elaboration of a global farmers markets report encapsulating key findings of the project.
This initiative was conceived in the framework of the Food Coalition, a multi-stakeholder global alliance proposed by the Government of Italy and led by FAO to facilitate unified global action in response to and recovery from COVID-19.
In July 2023, FAO started the implementing the ‘Global Network of Farmers Markets’ Initiative. The three-year project aims to explore and promote diverse farmers market models and collective mechanisms for small-scale producers to engage in sustainable food systems and become economic, social and environmental sustainability agents.
