I left this year’s 아프리카 식량 시스템 포럼 feeling energized about the future. AFSF brings people, united in a common cause, together — to ensure Africa’s food systems deliver more, better.
At the event Kigali, Rwanda, I reunited with people I hadn’t seen in person in several years, but the depth of the relationships had very much endured — and I think part of the reason is that, in person or not, we’ve been working in partnership the whole time.
A notable amount of youth participation also boosted the energy of the conference, which makes sense on a continent where around 70% of the population is under 30 years of age. I’ve been inspired by the young, energetic leaders at the helm of GFN member food banks like It Rains Food Bank Ethiopia and Banco de Alimentos de Moçambique, and that same spirit was alive in Kigali.
Amid that backdrop of focus, inspiration and collaboration, here are three takeaways from this year’s AFS Forum.
Food loss and waste is a huge issue — globally, 1.4 billion hectares of food are used to produce food that is never eaten — and I was thankful to see it represented strongly at AFSF.
This was the case particularly because IKEA Foundation soft launched the largest-ever philanthropic investment to address food waste from farm to plate. This landmark investment is bringing organizations across eight geographies together to scale proven solutions that make food go further — nourishing more people, creating more economic value and reducing pressure on the planet.
I’m proud that GFN is a collaborator in this initiative, which will make food go further and create value for people, economies and the planet. More to come on this in the next few months!
This year’s theme was “Investing in Africa’s Agri-Food Systems,” and one of the areas of focus was “nourishing nations.” On a continent where 309 million people are food insecure, creating better, more consistent access to nutritious diets is something that came up repeatedly.
GFN is addressing this issue directly through its Agricultural Recovery Hub, which helps food banks increase recovery of surplus produce on or near farms to ensure more people can access highly nutritious foods.
Located in Nairobi, Kenya, the Hub focuses on 지식과 기술 지원을 제공합니다. food banks need to start, scale and continually improve their efforts to recover fresh produce from farms and agricultural markets and distribute that nutritious food to people facing hunger.
Supported by GFN’s Agricultural Recovery Hub, food banking organizations sourced 55% more from agricultural sources in 2025 than they did in 2024, delivering 228 million kilograms of nutritious food to people globally.
Smallholder farmers manage as much as 80% of farmland in Africa, which means that the continent’s path to prosperity is tied to their well-being. That notion was very much alive in Kigali, and it fits together nicely with my first two takeaways.
For a community to be self-reliant during times of shock or stress, communities need strong local food systems. And we also need to ensure that the good food that’s already being produced is used to feed people, not landfills. As mentioned, GFN and member food banks are addressing food loss through agricultural recovery programs and the Hub. But that’s not the only way.
You can’t reduce what you don’t measure. GFN’s 액자 (메탄 배출을 피하기 위한 식량 회수) methodology is a practical tool for food banks and others to better measure and understand their emissions reductions and other benefits from food recovery efforts. With this robust methodology in place, food banks and other organizations that recover and redistribute surplus food can quantify exactly how they’re helping small-scale farmers reduce postharvest loss and feed people facing hunger.
As I reflect on the energy of AFSF, I’m hoping that momentum carries us forward to other key events this year — from Climate Week NYC to COP31. Food waste is one of the most addressable global climate challenges of our time. Now is the time to support food waste reduction projects, which present opportunities to create immediate climate impact while unlocking major benefits for agribusinesses — smallholder farms foremost amongst them — as well as communities and the planet.
