This has been a year when the Covid-19 pandemic caused many to be cut off from their families, work, social lives, and even, at times, their supply of food. The use of evidence-based planning for a sustainable food system is more relevant today than ever. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) theme for the 2020 World Food Day on ‘growing, nourishing and sustaining together’ is apt. We need to reassess the importance of the food system in our lives, and how we can make it stronger. Pakistan struggles with poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition. Despite the soil fertility and one of the largest contiguous irrigation systems, several segments of society face challenges in gaining stable access to a healthy and balanced diet. For vulnerable communities, setbacks like the Covid-19 pandemic, the floods, or the arrival of the desert locusts, make it even harder.