David Laborde has been serving as the Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations since February 2023. In this capacity, he oversees key publications such as the State of Food Security and Nutrition (SOFI) and the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA). He also leads initiatives on policy monitoring, reform, and the realignment of incentives to support agrifood system transformation, with a focus on resilience and the bioeconomy. ​

Prior to joining FAO, Laborde spent 16 years at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington D.C., where he led the research theme on Macroeconomics and Trade and co-directed the Ceres2030 project. His research interests encompass food security and nutrition in the contexts of globalization and climate change. He has extensively worked on measuring and modeling domestic and border farm and food policies, particularly regarding their environmental and social implications. ​

Laborde has developed several economic models, notably the MIRAGE and MIRAGRODEP models, and databases such as MAcMapHS6 on tariffs and the TASTE software. He has been a contributor to the GTAP database and was recognized as a GTAP research fellow since 2005, receiving the Alan A. Powell Award in 2018 for his contributions. Throughout his career, he has authored over 150 publications and edited numerous books and high-level policy reports. ​