Food Is a Force for ‘Peace’, Says Norway’s Crown Prince

Food is about more than nutrition for the body. It’s also a powerful tool that can transform people's lives, says Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon.

Speaking at the EAT forum in Stockholm, the Prince highlighted how he had seen its transformative powers. People like Pamela, a single mother of four in Zambia, and Mateo, a farmer in Guatemala, both benefited from agricultural initiatives that gave them a livelihood and independence, the Prince said.

Pamela became a beneficiary of a crop diversification program that enabled her to start growing other types of food than the corn her village had relied on, which was vulnerable to floods and droughts. The program enabled her to put her kids through school and most importantly for Pamela, she didn’t have to depend on a man, the Prince said.

“Pamela told me that for her this was a game-changer,” the Prince said. “For Pamela food was not only about nutrition for the body, it was about security, empowerment, education, autonomy, development and sustainability.”

For Mateo, the head of his local farmer group, the agricultural initiative gave his village “livelihoods, freedom and the possibility of living a life with dignity,” according to the Prince.

“Food is about more than nutrition for the body. Food is also a powerful tool for peace building,” said Crown Prince Haakon.

More than 600 delegates from over 60 countries are gathered at the two-day EAT Stockholm Food Forum, which is for the first time jointly hosted by the Swedish government and EAT.

Related content

Articles

Leveraging aquatic foods can help policymakers address multiple global challenges, new analysis shows

The role of food from oceans, rivers and lakes in tackling malnutrition, cardiovascular disease, and climate risk is still underutilized, finds new Blue Food Assessment paper.

Read article "Leveraging aquatic foods can help policymakers address multiple global challenges, new analysis shows"

EAT News

The EAT-Lancet Commission Brief for African Cities

How can a Planetary Health Diet look in some of the world's fastest growing urban areas?

Read article "The EAT-Lancet Commission Brief for African Cities"

EAT News

The Blue Food Assessment Launch

Join EAT at the Global Launch Event of the Blue Food Assessment on the 16th of September.

Read article "Did you say blue foods?"