Young people can transform the agri-food chain, they just need support and opportunities

For the last couple of weeks, over 400 young people from over 35 countries completed the MyFood30 survey and shared their views on the future of our agri-food systems.

MyFood30 was designed to find out what support young people need to make a contribution to the agri-food system related Sustainable Development Goals (SDG2, 12 and 15).

From 10 August until 29 September MyFood30 partner organizations helped to share a short survey with as many young agri-food experts as possible. A Talent Workshop in Bern and a Side Event at CFS 42 in Rome then brought young people and decision makers together to discuss the results and consider solutions.

After the long wait, the project results have now been summarized in an interactive online report. Findings showed that 2 in 5 young people had not yet heard of the SDGs but once introduced to the global goals, 93% felt that they could do something to contribute to their delivery. Check out the full report here: www.myfood30.net/online-report.

Here are some bullet summary findings from the survey; 

• Among the 436 respondents for the survey, 248 were young persons between the ages of 15 and 30.
• 2 in 5 young respondents (those aged 15 - 30) hadn’t heard of the SDGs before completing the survey.
• SDG 2, 12 and 15 scored higher especially in the targets prioritization
• 93% of young respondents felt they could definitely contribute or contribute to some extent to ensuring the SDGs happen.
• 48% of young respondents felt they didn't face any barriers to making a contribution
• 1 in 4 young respondents felt that their voices were not heard by decision makers.
• Young respondents were broadly satisfied  with the current education system but still identified room for improvement!
• Young people feel that skills are lacking especially in the transition from education to employment.
• 68% of young respondents wanted to learn through practical and applied projects.Nearly 1 in 2 wanted to develop their knowledge through interaction with sector experts.

About MyFood30

MyFood30 is a project by the Swiss National FAO Committee .It is supported by the Swiss Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and delivered by Foodways Consulting GmbH, in partnership with YPARD