2025: The year food systems moved from promise to practice

In July, the streets of Addis Ababa filled with delegates from every corner of the world. National Convenors, ministers, farmers’ representatives, youth leaders, private sector, scientists and civil society advocates gathered with a shared sense of urgency: five years remain to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, and food systems touch every one of them.

By the time the UN Food Systems Summit +4 Stocktake (UNFSS+4) closed, one message had crystallized: food systems are no longer viewed as a narrow agricultural issue, but as a unifying thread linking climate action, economic resilience, health, peace and social justice. That clarity defined 2025.

Across regions, governments strengthened school meals, integrated food and climate policy, expanded community-led solutions and elevated youth voices. National Convenors led this shift, helping to move food systems from concept to delivery.

A global Stocktake with delivery at its core

UNFSS+4 marked a turning point. It brought together a coalition of thousands – governments, scientists, youth, farmers’ representatives, private sector, global institutions and civil society – united to accelerate food systems transformation across climate, biodiversity and development agendas. Nearly all countries had developed national pathways, and many had already moved decisively into implementation.

The Stocktake was a checkpoint, not a celebration – a moment to examine what is working, what is stalling, and where ambition must rise. The UN Secretary-General’s UNFSS+4 Call to Action set out six priorities: scaling finance, supporting fragile settings, deepening policy coherence, grounding decisions in science, strengthening youth leadership and fostering intergenerational collaboration. It underscored that food systems are not peripheral – they are one of the most effective levers for advancing development, equity and climate resilience together.

From commitments to country-level change

Across regions, 2025 revealed a more mature phase of food systems transformation. As outlined in the UN Secretary-General’s UNFSS+4 report, governments increasingly approached food, climate, health and livelihoods as interconnected –  a shift now reshaping institutions. Ministries once divided by mandates aligned strategies, coordinated budgets and embedded food systems into national planning frameworks.

Decision-making widened, bringing in farmers’ organizations, Indigenous Peoples, women, youth, civil society and private sector actors. Evidence and innovation gained importance, with increased investments in data systems, research partnerships and digital tools.

The Food Systems and Climate Action Convergence Initiative, supported by the Netherlands, expanded to 16 countries conducting national workshops and dialogues to align national food systems pathways with climate commitments. What began as a technical effort to harmonize planning has become a political tool for integrated national decision-making.

The Hub also expanded knowledge-sharing in 2025 through seven Dialogues with National Convenors and a set of public webinars on monitoring, investment and inclusive policy design. New evidence products and collaborations – including the Coalitions of Action Survey, EAT–Lancet 2.0 follow-up, and work with the Committee on World Food Security – strengthened countries’ ability to apply science and coordinated governance to their food systems priorities.

Youth leadership comes into focus

In May, more than 100 young changemakers from over 50 countries gathered in Thailand for the Preparatory Youth Conference ahead of UNFSS+4. Together, they crafted an updated Youth Declaration calling for inclusive governance, science-based decisions and intergenerational equity.

By July, youth voices were embedded throughout the Stocktake – not as observers, but as contributors.

Throughout the year, alumni of the Youth Leadership Programme, supported by Germany, carried this momentum home – applying systems thinking to education, infrastructure, food loss, education and community planning from Asia to the Caribbean and Africa. A policy brief released later in the year highlighted how young professionals are also helping connect science, policy and community action through new science–policy–society interfaces.

Financing, science and the architecture of change

Behind every strengthened policy or programme lies an enabling architecture of finance, data and governance. In 2025, the Joint SDG Fund Food Systems Window continued to scale that architecture. Since 2023, it has activated joint UN programmes in 18 countries, supporting regenerative agriculture, inclusive finance, school meals, nutrition policies and climate-smart production.

The EU-funded Scalable Success Models project supported National Convenors to map actors, diagnose barriers and design context-specific solutions for pathway implementation. Its greatest contribution has been reinforcing processes that sustain transformation and strengthening national ownership.

Science continued moving closer to policy. The Hub’s Scientific Advisory Committee released major briefs on governance, planetary boundaries and data and evidence. The UN Food Systems Task Force launched a Food Systems Thinking Guide for UN Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams. At the global level, the UN Deputy Secretary-General established a High-level UN Food Systems Advisory Group to guide strategic direction for the UNFSS+4.

Food systems take center stage in global diplomacy

By UNGA80 in September, the message from Addis had fully entered the global agenda. Food systems featured prominently in the SDG Moment.

At the Second World Summit for Social Development in Doha, leaders emphasized how food systems shape livelihoods, social protection and access to healthy diets. The Hub shared country experiences linking food systems action to social development outcomes.

At COP30 in Belém, food systems moved deeper into climate negotiations. The Hub supported countries and partners across the two weeks, drawing on lessons from the Convergence Initiative. Together with Brazil, WFP and the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, the Hub launched a new initiative training diplomats and government officers from Amazon countries on integrating food systems into climate policy.

The power of storytelling

In 2025, food systems also entered mainstream media in new ways. Global outlets such as Devex, Thomson Reuters, Bangkok Post, IPS News and France 24 carried stories linking food to climate justice, gender equity and development finance. National broadcasters covered UNFSS+4, and social media campaigns like #OnMyPlate expanded public engagement. Visibility grew not only for challenges but for the solutions communities and governments are already building.

A year that clarified what is possible

By December, a clearer picture had emerged. Countries were not merely drafting plans – they were financing, legislating, implementing and measuring progress. Youth shaped decisions. Climate negotiators recognized food’s centrality. Social-development leaders saw livelihoods, nutrition and dignity as inseparable.

Patterns across 2025 showed that political will, evidence, financing, partnerships and public engagement are now more aligned than at any point since 2021.

Looking ahead

The work ahead remains immense. Fragile contexts demand more support. Finance must reach further. Climate pressures will intensify. Inequalities persist.

But 2025 demonstrated that the foundations for transformation are firmly in place – in national pathways, governance structures, financing mechanisms, youth networks, scientific partnerships and regional platforms.

Food systems did not solve the world’s crises this year.

But in 2025, they became one of the world’s strongest tools for confronting them – together.