Highlights of IFPRI’s recent food policy research for the government of Australia

In the wake of the food crises of the early 1970s and the resulting World Food Conference of 1974, a group of innovators realized that food security depends not only on crop production, but also on the policies that affect food systems, from farm to table. In 1975, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) was founded. IFPRI was fortunate to have as its first board chairman world-renowned Australian economist Sir John Crawford, who was a passionate advocate for international agricultural research and an architect of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (now the CGIAR Consortium), of which IFPRI is a member. The Institute provides solid research and evidence-based policy options to partners in donor and recipient countries. The issues have changed and expanded over time, ranging from food subsidies and commercialization of agriculture in the early years to promotion of public–private partnerships, investment in agricultural research, provision of safety nets to strengthen resilience, prioritization of nutrition intervention for women and children, strategies for climate change adaptation and mitigation, support for country-led agricultural growth strategies, and partnerships with other stakeholders in global movements such as Scaling Up Nutrition in recent years. Working with many longstanding partners, including the government of Australia and its Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), IFPRI’s food policy research has contributed to reducing poverty and improving food security for the world’s poor.

This brochure highlights key collaborations between IFPRI and the Australian government, often in partnership with other institutions.