Curation of indicators
For the curation of indicators, all indicators housed on the Food System Dashboard (FSD) platform (n=288) and all indicators included in the Multidimensional Index of Sustainable Food Systems of Brazil (MISFS) (n=46) were considered, totaling an initial universe of 310 indicators.
As an initial criterion, indicators that consisted of composite indices that were difficult to replicate; indicators that did not reflect the reality of Brazil; Indicators for which data was only available at the national level, making subnational estimation (macro-regions, states, and/or municipalities) impossible, were excluded, leaving a set of 204 indicators.
After applying the exclusion criteria, the remaining 204 indicators were evaluated by an expert reviewer according to the methodology proposed by the global FSCI for indicator quality criteria¹. The quality criteria evaluated are presented in Table 1 below:
Table 1. Quality criteria evaluated for each indicator:
| Score | Geographic Coverage | Data Accessibility | Methodology Transparency | Data Update Frequency | Relevance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Data covers less than 50% of Brazilian territory | It is unclear when or how the data can be accessed | There is no description of the methodology | Data collection with an interval >10 years or no prospect of updating | Low relevance to the Brazilian context or duplication of information with another indicator of better quality |
| 2 | Data covers 50% to 75% of Brazilian territory | Restricted access or through payments | Limited information on the methodology or questionable methodology | Data collection with an interval of 3-10 years | Medium or low relevance, but requested by relevant actors |
| 3 | Data covers more than 50% of Brazilian territory | Publicly accessible data | Clear, replicable, and high-quality methodology | Annual or biannual data collection | High relevance to the Brazilian context |
At the end of the evaluation process according to the quality criteria, each indicator received a score ranging from 5 to 15. The 98 indicators with scores between 14 and 15 were selected for the data collection and calculation stage.
This stage proved fundamental for validating the operational feasibility of the indicators, since only during the process of accessing the databases and operationalizing the calculations was it possible to identify limitations not previously detected. In five cases, the necessary data were not available as initially planned, making it impossible to calculate the respective indicators. As a result, the final set was reduced to 93 indicators.
The FSCI global methodology considers five thematic areas as essential for good monitoring of food systems: Governance; Resilience; Nutrition, diet and health; Environment, production and natural resources; and Livelihoods¹. These thematic areas serve to ensure good representation of cross-cutting phenomena and outcomes of food systems and to ensure the multidisciplinary inclusion of experts in the process of in-depth technical discussion on indicators.
Therefore, in addition to the 93 pre-selected indicators, 9 indicators developed and applied in Brazil were supplemented as they are considered essential indicators for the thematic areas of Governance; Resilience; and Environment, production and natural resources, as shown in Table 2.
Table 2. Supplementary indicators, developed and applied in Brazil.
| Indicator Name | Data Source | Thematic Area |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of fish stocks with known diagnosis (%) | Fisheries Audit Brazil | Environment, Production and Natural Resources |
| Percentage of fisheries fully covered by landing monitoring (%) | Fisheries Audit Brazil | Environment, Production and Natural Resources |
| Percentage of fisheries with a set of management measures to control fishing effort or catch limits (%) | Fisheries Audit Brazil | Environment, Production and Natural Resources |
| Percentage of total water intake used for irrigation and livestock production (%) | National Water Resources Information System Portal (SNIRH), Indicators of Consumptive Water Use in Brazil | Environment, production and natural resources |
| Number of civil society organizations involved in rural development, environmental protection, health, social assistance, education and research | Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA) - Map of Civil Society Organizations | Governance |
| PresSISAN: Presence and quality of the National Food and Nutritional Security System in Brazilian municipalities | Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics - Basic Municipal Information Survey 2023; PresSISAN Methodology. | Governance |
| National Public Transparency Index | Public Transparency Radar | Governance |
| Public Transparency and Governance Index | Transparency International Brazil | Governance |
| CadInSAN: Municipal Indicator of Severe Food Insecurity Risk (%) | Secretariat of Evaluation, Information Management and Single Registry (SAGICAD) - VIS DATA 3 beta | Resilience |
Although they did not achieve scores between 14 and 15 in the criteria of geographic coverage, data accessibility, methodological transparency, update frequency, and relevance, based on technical deliberation, 34 indicators were reincorporated into the set in a complementary manner, aiming to broaden the diversity of options and more comprehensively support discussions in the workshop phase with experts.
The diagram in Figure 1 below summarizes the steps for curating the indicators:
Figure 1. Flowchart of the technical curation of pre-workshop indicators and consultation questionnaire for relevant stakeholders on the food systems and climate agenda in Brazil.
- Schneider KR, Fanzo J, Haddad L, Herrero M, Moncayo JR, Herforth A, et al. The state of food systems worldwide in the countdown to 2030. Nat Food. 2023;4(12):1090-1110. doi:10.1038/s43016-023-00885-9.