FAO Conference Advanced One Health in Agrifood Systems
Global officials met in Rome to integrate plant health and biosecurity into One Health policy frameworks.
Updated on Sept. 30, 2026 in Botany
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The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) held a three-day global conference in Rome to shift the One Health framework from theory into operational action. The meeting focused on integrating plant health and biosecurity standards into broader agrifood system strategies.
Why it matters
Incorporating plant health into One Health governance is essential for managing cross-border biosecurity risks and systemic agricultural threats. The initiative aims to align international standards to protect food security and agricultural sustainability.
The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) utilized its Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation tool, a diagnostic framework designed to identify gaps in national plant health systems, to demonstrate how countries can quantify their biosecurity readiness.
The players
FAO
The Food and Agriculture Organization is a specialized UN agency leading global efforts to eliminate hunger and improve food security.
IPPC
The International Plant Protection Convention is a global treaty organization that sets international standards for phytosanitary measures.
INRAE
The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment focuses on agricultural innovation and food system health.
EFSA
The European Food Safety Authority provides scientific advice on risks linked to the food chain within the European Union.
The details
The IPPC — an international treaty organization that prevents the spread of pests and diseases in plants — employs technical tools like the Pest Outbreak Alert and Response System to track biological threats. During the conference, officials discussed these surveillance methods alongside e-learning resources available in English, French, and Spanish to standardize phytosanitary training across borders.
Timeline
September 21-23, 2026: FAO Global Conference on One Health in Rome.
The Tech Race
The shift reflects a broader competitive trend in international governance to unify fragmented biosecurity data streams under the One Health mandate. The IPPC is moving to establish these standards as the definitive global benchmark for agrifood system resilience.
Professional and policy stakeholders can access existing IPPC e-learning resources in English, French, and Spanish to align their local systems with new standards. The outcomes will likely reshape regulatory compliance requirements for agricultural exports and biosecurity reporting in the coming years.
The takeaway
The move to integrate plant health into One Health signals a shift toward treating agricultural biosecurity as a core pillar of public health. Watch for the forthcoming IPPC research on antimicrobial use, which will likely serve as the baseline for future international regulatory standards.
What happens next
The IPPC plans to release new research regarding antimicrobial usage within plant protection protocols, as well as updated technical reports on integrating plant health into One Health policy frameworks.
Further reading
Learn more about the latest international standards and research in the Botany section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by International Plant Protection Convention.
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