Starting on Monday 25 September and lasting through Wednesday 27 September, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) will host the first-ever Global Conference on Sustainable Livestock Transformation.

The event will offer a neutral forum for representatives of FAO Members, producer organizations, research and academic institutions, development agencies, civil society organizations and private sector bodies to engage in dialogues on innovations and pathways to efficiently produce more nutritious, safe and affordable animal source foods while reducing the environmental footprint and contribute to inclusive profitable local diversified livestock systems that are more resilient to shocks and disruptions.

FAO Director-General QU Dongyu will open the event at the first plenary session, starting at 0930 CET. It will be followed by two keynote addresses and a high-level ministerial panel exploring policy options and pathways for sustainable livestock transformation. Several ministers and vice-ministers have confirmed their attendance. Following a second high level ministerial session, the Director-General will offer closing remarks at the sixth and final session starting at 14:00 CET on Wednesday.

The agenda

Four sessions feature participation by world experts and key stakeholders on topics ranging from animal feed and health to human nutrition, the use of digital technologies, the role of livestock for smallholders' livelihoods and discuss synergies and trade-offs between livestock production, and the environmental, social and economic dimension of sustainability. All sessions will be webcast here.

"Methane emissions in livestock and rice systems: Sources, quantification, mitigation and metrics", a new FAO report, will be launched on Monday (at 12:45 CET).

The conference features five side events on topics ranging from the upcoming International Year of Camelids to the role of science and innovation, One Health-One Welfare and investments in the livestock sector. The themes were selected from a submissions to a global open call.

The conference also features 12 success stories showcasing innovative solutions and approaches used to transform livestock production systems to make them more sustainable. These success stories – selected from submissions to an open call - are presented in the Joint Exhibition on Sustainable Livestock Transformation and Agricultural Mechanization, organized by FAO's Animal Production and Health Division and the Plant Production and Protection Division. A timetable for events is available here.

The Global Conference aims to raise awareness of the contribution of sustainable livestock production to local and global objectives, to share information and knowledge on strategic and technical developments in the sector, and to establish priorities for the mobilization and pooling of scientific, technical and financial resources to achieve global sustainable livestock transformation.

In parallel with the conference, FAO in collaboration with UNIMED- Mediterranean Universities Union – is organizing the Global Youth Dialogue on Sustainable Livestock Transformation, bringing in around 150 young people with professional or academic backgrounds in livestock or related sectors.