Sustainable food systems: The path to global action

This article is sponsored by Deloitte.

A perfect storm is looming: Climate change is damaging arable land, weather and water patterns are getting more volatile, and nature loss is compounding these two effects. As a result, feeding our global population is becoming more difficult. It’s a classic case of a negative spiral, with the casualty being the tragedy of more hungry bellies.

It is no exaggeration to claim that we are collectively in the midst of one of the most critical challenges of our time regarding the future of our planet and our humanity: how to ensure food security, tackle climate change and halt nature loss. This Food-Climate-Nature nexus presents a dilemma that will likely only get worse unless, together, we confront it head on, and seize the opportunity to mobilize our ingenuity, with the right knowledge, technology, practices and funding.

Decarbonization of the agriculture sector has long been seen as a difficult task. Accounting for nearly a quarter of global emissions, transformation of the agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector is critical if we are to avoid the worst effects of climate change. Deep interplay of availability of land, biodiversity, weather, water and the necessities of food consumption create a “Gordian Knot” for countries and organizations, hindering effective collaboration at scale to advance sustainable management.

Solution-oriented discussions and close collaboration among governments, corporations and community representatives at a global and local level are critical to the deployment of technology and the financial resources needed to help transform the sector and advance sustainable food systems. To make progress, we need to collectively raise awareness of transition pathways, remove barriers and enable action in a systemic way — and recognize and celebrate where progress is being made to inspire further positive action.

A closer look at sustainable food systems

Human activities have exceeded six of the nine planetary boundaries deemed critical for maintaining the stability and resilience of our Earth system as a whole. One consequence of increased ecosystem degradation has been increasing food insecurity. As a result, there is an immediate need to maintain and enhance the functionality of those ecosystems that are central to food production today and in the future.

Deloitte Global Future of Food Leader Randy Jagt emphasized the importance of addressing critical challenges in the food sector. He stated, “Advancing sustainable food systems, addressing food insecurity and affordability, minimizing undernourishment and scaling up nutritional efficiency and balancing food production demands — while maintaining ecosystem functionality and embedding resilience to climate change — are central priorities on the international food agenda. Enabling innovative solutions at the Food-Climate-Nature nexus will be central to our ability to feed the human population sustainably.”

Feeding the world sustainably: Nature-positive experiences

In pockets around the world, communities and organizations are working together to share ideas, draw on data insights and find new ways of working to help improve ecosystem functionality and resilience. Let’s look at three approaches that are already making an impact that matters: better sustainable land use and regenerative practices, targeted innovation around value chains, and the potential of precision agriculture.

First, a report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) confirms that soil erosion and runoff have been observed across 65 percent of agricultural systems, which significantly undermines those ecosystems’ ability to function. Experiences from several countries can inform pathways for sustainable land use management:

• Morocco has successfully integrated soil fertility management to increase rainwater absorption and reduce runoff and erosion by 33-44 percent. This proactive approach to taking care of soil will help support healthy crops.
• Ethiopia has used soil bunds to reduce erosion, water and nutrient runoff by between 27 and 50 percent, and deployed site-specific fertilizer solutions to increase wheat yields among smallholder farmers by 38 percent. This collaboration at a very local level will help transform lives.
• Madagascar, home to 80 percent of global vanilla production, has worked with the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming (LV3) to train 3,000 family farmers on sustainable practices, establish a farmer-owned cooperative “Tambatra,” and convert more than 11,000 acres into agroforestry, thereby protecting ecosystems and significantly increasing livelihood incomes.

On this more promising note, sustainable land use management and regenerative practices appear to hold immense potential to synergistically increase the health and functionality of local ecosystems, reduce overall emissions and enhance livelihoods.

Second, modifying value chain approaches is also seeing results. When coupled with targeted innovation, improved value chains can provide necessary pathways to enhanced traceability, emissions reductions and development of climate and nature-smart products, as shown by these examples:

• Natura &Co, a founding member of Union for Ethical Biotrade standard in 2009, is evaluating and reporting on nature impacts and dependencies, with a goal of full traceability and certification of key supply chains including palm oil and soy by 2025, deforestation and land use conversion-free supply chains by 2030, and 30 percent of ingredients certified regenerative by 2030.
• Maple Leaf Foods and Nutrien have collaborated to implement sustainable livestock feed and have started field-level tracking of nitrogen-based emission reductions and generated greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction insets, certified by SustainCert.

Third, precision agriculture has unlimited potential. It leverages earth observation data, often coupled with in situ sensors, to monitor plant health, soil functionality and nutrient uptake to optimize the variable application rate of water, fertilizer and other nutrients. When applied effectively, precision agriculture techniques can reduce operational costs by as much as 25 percent while enhancing overall yields by 2.5 percent, reducing the need for nitrogen-based fertilizers and abating 27 metric tons CO₂e annually — contributing nearly US$400 billion to the global economy by 2030.

Maintaining momentum on the global stage

In addition to the progress seen on the ground in communities, in June, the G7 launched the Apulia Food Systems Initiative (AFSI) to develop systemic approaches to enhancing food security and nutrition. Building on the joint commitment announced two years prior to mobilize US$14 billion annually for food security, AFSI aims to build resilient and productive food systems. This will enable both sustainability and enhanced access to adequate nutrition in the face of the increasing impacts of climate change; it will also mobilize key actors across multilateral organizations, the private sector and philanthropies towards galvanizing innovation and action ahead of the 2025 Paris Nutrition for Growth Summit.

Before the Growth Summit, two imminent international meetings will take place to help accelerate discussions on biodiversity, climate change, and operationalizing and scaling sustainable food systems. Negotiators and civil society will convene in Cali, Colombia, for the 16th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16), and soon after again in Baku, Azerbaijan, for the 29th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP29).

Negotiations in Cali and Baku respectively should focus on overcoming barriers to finance mobilization, dissemination of technology and building of capacity, and leveraging areas of opportunity to implement climate-conscious and nature-positive solutions.

Geneva Claesson, partner, Sustainability & Climate Change, Deloitte Canada, reflected on the importance of these global platforms and said, “By convening businesses to lead at the Food-Climate-Nature nexus, we not only drive sustainable innovation but also set a precedent for global stewardship, ensuring a resilient future for our planet and generations to come.”

Moving from awareness to action

Although the international commitments and increased attention have helped raise awareness of the need to tackle the interlinked challenges at the Food-Climate-Nature nexus, more action needs to take place across the international community to mobilize an estimated US$27 billion annually to lift the 500 million most vulnerable humans out of malnutrition. Action is also needed to help build capacity, enhance modalities for technology transfer and mobilize capital to support transformation of the agricultural sector.

Last but not least is the need for greater progress by governments on updating the National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) to fully reflect and operationalize critical food system pathways to help achieve the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. This advancement is important to inform the development of new and investable nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for submission under the UNFCCC COP29.

As the international community negotiates critical financial modalities at the Food-Climate-Nature nexus, innovative experiences, technologies and practices can help illustrate sustainable development modalities in operation, so we collectively continue to unlock and support more sustainable food ecosystems around the world.

Future focus for private and public sector leaders

The focus for leaders should shift to identifying impactful and scalable solutions, advancing immediate steps to progress, and fostering a strategic approach to progressively evolving food systems as organizations and governments transition on the journey to a sustainable future. Looking forward, it is important for both the public and private sectors to enhance collaborations to help shape coalitions, build and configure supporting platforms, and design strategies and modalities to support transformation, scale solutions and accelerate impactful action.

Read more on the costs and opportunities of long-term food system transformation in Deloitte’s latest report, “Turning point: Feeding the world sustainably”.

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