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Meeting of ISPP Task Force on Global Food Security

Tuesday 27 August 2013, at 16h00 -18h00, Room 311A
At the International Congress of Plant Pathology, Beijing

Minutes
 
1. INTRODUCTION AND PLAN FOR THE MEETING

Discussion points:

    1.1  History of Task Force sessions associated with ICPP was briefly discussed: Richard Strange (RS) provided an overview.

    1.2  Action: The Task Force for Global Food Security activities should be reflected on the ISPP web page.  This aspect was discussed with Peter Williamson (PW) who fully supports this notion.   Responsible: RS and Lise Korsten (LK). 

2. REVIEW OF RECENT INITIATIVES
As grouped under "5 ACTIVITIES" identified at the first meeting of the Task Force:  

ACTIVITY 1: Changing Public Policy and Opinions on Global Food Security

    1.1  Following the initiation at ICPP 1998 and continuation at ICPP 2003 and ICPP 2008, a Plenary Session and a dedicated Evening Session entitled “Can we improve global food security?” was organized at ICPP 2013. 

        1.1.1       Decision: It was agreed that the Task Force should organise a similar event at ICPP 2018, Boston, USA.
        1.1.2       Action: LK discussed this with new congress organisers. 
        1.1.3       Follow up action: discuss with other Task Force committee members regarding the theme, speakers, format etc.

    1.2  Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food. RS provided a comprehensive overview of the current status of the journal.  The journal is now well established with a Thompson Index rating of 2.07. The totals of published items were 278 papers with 27 focused on plant pathology, 30 editorials, 23 reviews, 168 original papers, 2 case studies, 11 conference reports and 40 book reviews among others.

        1.2.1  Action: The activities of the journal should be updated on the Web page and a flyer should be established to further promote the journal.
        1.2.2  Responsible: RS.

    1.3 Task Force presence at priority meetings: Members should attend Food Security meetings if possible to promote the activities of the Task Force and Society at large.
        1.3.1  Action: Just to consider if applicable.

    1.4  Revisit the Policy Statement on Biotechnology: The committee is not aware of this statement. This point on the agenda can be removed because it falls beyond the mandate of this Task Force.

ACTIVITY 2: Enhanced PhD training for plant pathology in developing countries linking with Food Security

        Task Force activities See http://www.isppweb.org/foodsecurity_phdtraining.asp

ACTIVITY 3: Quantification of the economic impact of some major diseases

        o    See Annual Review of Phytopathology article on "Plant disease: a threat to global food security" http://www.isppweb.org/foodsecurity_mins1023.asp#act1.5
        o    New ISPP Subject Matter Committee “Biotic Constraints to Food and Fiber Production"
For discussion under Item 5: New initiatives; future directions

ACTIVITY 4: Challenge Programme

4.1  Congress Challenge 2003: Project in Ghana completed http://www.isppweb.org/foodsecurity_congresschallangeexecsummary.asp ISPP invested USD 50,000 over 3 years.  

4.2  Challenge Project 2007: Project in South Africa completed http://www.isppweb.org/about_challenge_project_2007_final_report.asp ISPP invested USD 50,000 over 3 years.  

4.3  Continuation of Challenge Programmes? ·        
        Need to discuss the objectives and future directions. ·        
        The consensus of the meeting was that this very successful programme should be continued. ·        
        Funding from alternative sources should be pursued. Responsible LK. ·        
        Funding sources? (should ISPP match funding raised by the Task Force?).

ACTIVITY 5: Development of a Food Security link on the ISPP Website (http://www.isppweb.org/) ·        

        Initiated discussion with Peter Williamson, ISPP Business Manager
        Material is required for the website. Responsible LK

5. NEW INITIATIVES; FUTURE DIRECTIONS ·        

Review of the Task Force programme; do the 5 “activities” need to be refreshed? ·        
        Suggestion that the Masters/PhD training in plant pathology in developing countries should be revisited, particularly in the light of new sources of funding e.g. Feed the Future Programme and the success of sandwich programmes in which part of the work is done in the Developing Country. ·        
Discussion of new initiatives and future directions ·        
        New ISPP Subject Matter Committee “Biotic Constraints to Food and Fiber Production" Led by Serge Savary. ·        
        Action – Link activities  

Membership of the Task Force
        Currently listed on http://www.isppweb.org/foodsecurity_tf.asp

6. NEXT MEETING ·        
        Next meeting at the 11th ICPP at Boston, USA in 2018. In the meantime, it is suggested that members of the Task Force should be encouraged to discuss ideas with the Chair by email. Perhaps an annual meeting or emails to solicit ideas from members of the Task Force.  The responses can be circulated and, where appropriate, acted upon?  Responsible LK. ·        
        Lodovica Gullino offers to host an interim meeting in Italy aligned with the Expo at Torino in 2015. 

7. ANY OTHER BUSINESS ·        
Appointment of Task Force Chair. Lise Korsten was appointed

Participants:  
Fen Beed
Charlie Delp
Maria Lodovica Gullino
Greg Johnson
Lise Korsten
Serge Savary
P Sharma
U S Singh
Richard Strange
Ariena Van Bruggen
Jang Wenuka