 COVID-19 is causing economic havoc around the globe and undermining efforts to end extreme poverty, hunger and malnutrition for millions of people across the globe. But this pandemic may only be the tip of the iceberg, exacerbating economic slowdowns and recessions already present in recent years. An FAO study in 77 countries revealed a rise in hunger between 2011 and 2017, with 65 of those countries already experiencing economies that were slowing or contracting. COVID-19 has accelerated these concerns. The world economy is expected to lose 11 trillion US dollars over 2020-2021 and up to 28 trillion US dollars over 2020-2025. This is the equivalent to losing the entire GDP of the United States of America. This contraction of economies is translating into skyrocketing unemployment and declining wages and incomes, seriously compromising people's capacity to access food. Sadly, the poor and most vulnerable who already spent the largest portion of their income on food are most at risk. Access to nutritious food and healthy diets is even more urgent during times of economic turmoil. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 3 billion people were already unable to afford healthy diets. The effects of the pandemic could nudge this figure up by approximately 17%. Governments have responded quickly to this pandemic-induced economic crisis, releasing stimulus packages with fiscal spending that has reached unprecedented levels. These efforts have helped maintain jobs for workers and softened the economic blow of containment measures. However, many low and middle countries lack the tools to deploy the necessary liquidity injections and public spending commitments to stimulate their economies and save lives. Now is the time for countries to implement smarter macroeconomic stimulus packages. These packages would address immediate needs while laying the foundations for building back better. A critical focus area is the transformation of agri-food systems and related infrastructure needed to achieve affordable healthy diets for all. Using policy and investment of agri-food systems transformation to the country implemented macroeconomic stimulus packages is an important first step. Governments also have an important role to play in prioritizing affordable healthy diets within their agriculture, trade and social protection policies and investments. To achieve this, macroeconomic stimulus packages must keep the food supply chains functioning while promoting more nutrition-sensitive value chains. Nutrition-sensitive investment in food and agriculture is critical going forward. Trade is a key ally in diversifying diets and lowering food price volatility, making nutritious and healthy diets more affordable. Restrictive trade policies must be avoided while trade-facilitating practices and intra-regional trade are promoted. Policies supporting decent rural employment opportunities and rural finance, including for women and youth, are more urgent than ever. An emphasis on nutrition-sensitive policies will assist countries in ensuring access to nutritious foods while increasing affordability of healthy diets for the most vulnerable populations. COVID-19 has exposed the fragility of hunger and food security and of our agri-food systems, but together we can implement smarter macroeconomic stimulus policies that transform agri-food systems with an aim to getting back on track to end world hunger.