APEC meets on food security

JAPAN : The first ever ministerial meeting on food security of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in the northern Japanese city of Niigata called on its members to facilitate investment, trade and markets in agriculture Sunday.

APEC economies should work together to facilitate improved agricultural trade, maintain reliable markets and enhance the business environment and ensure food safety in the region, a declaration of the meeting said.

An action plan on the food safety, which is also a fruit of the meeting, proposed that a platform for information should be set up by tools like a portal website to spread activities, best practices, research results and statistics.

The plan contains more than 60 measures covering the issues including climate change and disaster preparedness. They will be taken by members in the next five years. The meeting also promoted the idea of the sustainable development of the agriculture sector to increase the availability of sufficient, safe and nutritious food in the region.

The two-day event kicked off on Saturday. It was also joined by representatives from the organizations including the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Food Program (WFP).

Japanese minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Michihiko Kano said at the opening ceremony on Saturday that increasing the availability of food was necessary not only for the APEC region but also for the food security in the world.

Niigata, Sunday, Xinhua