Food And Agriculture Organization - FAO

A United Nations agency that works on international efforts to defeat hunger by helping developing countries modernize and improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices. Serving both developed and developing countries, the Food and Agriculture Organization also aims to be a neutral forum where nations can negotiate agreements and debate policy.

The FAO was established in 1945 and is composed of eight departments: administration and finance; agriculture and consumer protection; economic and social development; fisheries and aquaculture; forestry; knowledge and communication; natural resource management; and technical cooperation.

Rather than providing food to countries suffering from famine, the FAO strives to set up sustainable food sources in those countries. For example, after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti left the country in shambles, the FAO quickly launched a series of initiatives designed to keep domestic food production and farm incomes up. Among these was the Haiti Food Security Emergency Tool, which aggregated data on usable roads, crop calendars, land use, livelihood zones and damage information to help improve food production and distribution in the ravaged country.