From Farm to Table, Technology Redraws the Future of Food Across Asia-Pacific

APEC economies and businesses are looking to technologies from artificial intelligence and biotechnology to blockchain to strengthen food security as climate volatility, water scarcity and energy price shocks put growing pressure on agriculture across the region.

Research presented at the APEC High-Level Public-Private Dialogue on Food Security in Dalian on Thursday noted that nearly five billion people worldwide lack essential micronutrients in their diets, underscoring that food security depends on nutritional quality as much as quantity.

As populations across the Asia-Pacific age, economies highlighted how nutrition will carry even greater weight in how food security is defined.

“The Asia-Pacific region accounts for nearly 40 percent of the world’s population and is the world’s most important region for food production, trade and consumption,” said Liu Huanxin, Administrator of China’s National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, opening the dialogue.

“Safeguarding and promoting regional food security requires all economies to stand together and move forward and requires joint efforts between public sector authorities and the business community,” Liu added.

Agri-food systems generate a third of global greenhouse gas emissions and across the dialogue, public and private representatives pointed to the potential of technology in turning agri-food systems environmentally positive while lifting nutritional value and closing the distance between producers and consumers.

From plants engineered to draw water from the air and smart soil management systems to grain warehouses cutting energy use by more than half, economies highlighted how technologies are transforming agricultural production into environmentally beneficial ones.

Experts at the dialogue highlighted how biotechnology is advancing nutritious food innovations, cutting the development time of enzymes, proteins driving the chemical reactions behind food and nutrition, from seven years down to months.

Private sector representatives said they are already using such technologies to design food suited to aging populations and chronic health conditions such as cholesterol-lowering plant oil.

The dialogue also highlighted how blockchain is increasing transparency and trust across the value chain, allowing farmers to receive payment within seconds of a sale. Policymakers emphasized how this provides smallholder farmers greater ownership in supply chains and closes the gap between producers and consumers.

Throughout discussions, economies examined how AI is optimizing decision-making across the food systems, from helping food storage more efficiently to cutting waste and lifting yields on farms. Policymakers also explored how similar tools can help families plan consumption and grocery shopping to save money, reduce food waste and improve nutrition in diets.

Experts also pointed to technological integration as the next challenge, both linking technologies across each stage of the value chain and extending adoption to small and medium enterprises.

Technology is opening agriculture to a new kind of talent, industry representatives stressed, drawing young data scientists and entrepreneurs into the sector. New roles in these fields can revitalize rural communities and draw a new generation into farming, they added.

“Technology can make our food systems more resilient, efficient and inclusive, which is exactly why APEC economies came together to adopt new principles on strengthening the region's food systems through innovation and digitalization,” said Dr Han Jizhi, 2026 Chair of Policy Partnership on Food Security.