Global climate finance for sustainable and agroecological food systems is shrinking amid a worsening climate crisis putting pressure on agriculture and the livelihoods of millions of farmers, according to a new report by the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, an alliance working to transform food systems.
The report stated that the percentage of climate finance for food systems dipped from 3 to 2.5 percent between 2017 and 2022 despite food systems accounting for about a third of all global greenhouse gas emissions, with livestock the biggest driver.
And funding into food systems dipped further as sustainable and agroecological food systems interventions only accounted for 1.5 percent of the money within the period.
“Of the $16.3 billion of public climate finance that flowed to food systems, only $9.1 billion could be labelled as sustainable,” said the report.
It explained that poor climate finance for agriculture does not match the significant emissions and hidden costs of food systems, nor does it consider the current impacts of global warming affecting the millions of people who rely on the sector for their livelihood.
It estimated the hidden costs of current industrial food systems to be about $12 trillion annually, noting that the current $16.3 billion allocated to food systems from public climate finance is significantly below the cost of transition to sustainable and agroecological food systems estimated between $430 to $500 billion yearly.
“While over 90 percent of current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) mention adaptation and mitigation in the agriculture sector as a priority, the scale of climate finance going toward food systems does not align with the 1.5-degree Paris Agreement targets,” it noted.
As countries work to review their NDCs next year, the report urged governments to outline clear plans for investments from public climate finance while calling for the rapid redirection of subsidies away from the $670 billion yearly harmful, polluting fossil fuel–intensive food systems towards a sustainable and agroecological one that work for people and the planet.
The report noted that the food system transformation will be effective when adequate investments are made across all areas.
“Resources need to flow to transform agricultural practices and production, as well as healthier food environments and diets.” “Resources must also address food loss and waste, and support inclusive, equitable governance and decision making.”
According to the report, projects that target healthy diets and address food loss and waste receive only 6 percent of the public climate finance going to sustainable and agroecological food systems.
The report stressed the need for climate finance to flow not only to agriculture and land use but to other intervention areas such as -improving food environments that enable healthy and sustainable diets, choices and governance.
It added that the new collective quantified goal (NCQG) needs to channel more funds towards urgently needed climate action through adaptation, mitigation, and addressing loss and damage to support resilient and equitable food systems.
“Quantifying mitigation efforts in food systems is challenging. But with half of public climate finance flowing to adaptation, sustainable and agroecological, food systems interventions are ripe for investment and will result in multiple co-benefits,” said the report.
“Farmers, fishers, pastoralists, food producers, and Indigenous Peoples who face the brunt of climate change lack access to climate finance to increase their climate resilience. New finance mechanisms are required to ensure funds flow directly to these groups and their organisations,” it stated.
“We call on policymakers, parties to the Paris Agreement, and public sector climate finance donors to shift and increase funding for food systems transformation,” it noted.
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