The World Food Prize Foundation has issued an open invitation to organisations around the world to sign the 2025 Laurette Letter—a bold call to action urging urgent investment in agricultural research and innovation to address the escalating crisis of food and nutrition insecurity.
The letter highlights the alarming reality: over 700 million people are currently food insecure—a number that is expected to rise due to factors such as climate change, declining crop yields, conflict, and biodiversity loss. The global community, the letter warns, is not on track to meet the world’s food needs, and without immediate, coordinated action, the situation will worsen.
At the heart of this call is a renewed emphasis on agricultural research and development (R&D). The letter urges governments, research institutions, and private stakeholders to prioritise investment in high-risk, high-reward scientific research—referred to as “planet-friendly moonshot” initiatives. These include transformative innovations in crop enhancement, crop diversification, sustainable storage, and more. These initiatives are seen as essential to building a resilient and sustainable food future.
Originally endorsed by 153 Nobel and World Food Prize Laureates, the Laurette Letter has since garnered support from 117 partner organisations as of March 25, 2025. The invitation to sign remains open, and organisations can join the movement by completing a simple online form provided by the World Food Prize Foundation.
