BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- China has made progress in reducing undernourishment, but worldwide hunger and malnutrition are on the rise, according to a report released by the United Nations (UN) in Beijing.

The annual report finds the numbers of hungry people reached 821 million in 2017, up from 815 million the previous year, reads the 2018 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report jointly produced by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and four other UN agencies.

"The alarming signs of increasing food insecurity and high levels of different forms of malnutrition are a clear warning that there is considerable work to be done to make sure we 'leave no one behind' on the road towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals on food security and improved nutrition," the heads of five UN agencies warned in their joint foreword to the report.

"We must take action quickly while there is still time to halt the erosion of our hard won gains in ending hunger," Nicholas Rossellini, UN Resident Coordinator for China stated at the launch event. "tackling climate resilience head on is one action that will help put us back on track towards meeting the goal of zero hunger."

The participants also agreed that China's experience in hunger elimination and nutrition promotion could be valuable to many other countries in the world.

The joint UN report monitors progress towards ending hunger, achieving food security and improving nutrition. This year's edition finds hunger has been on the rise over the past three years, returning to levels of a decade ago.