Can We Tackle Climate Change Without Fixing Our Broken Food Systems? – Does COP29 hold the answer

by Nutrilicious | Nov 27, 2024 | Hot Topics in nutrition, Food category comment, The Nation’s Health

We commissioned Marta Buczkowska to attend the food related sessions at COP29 and report back to us. Here is what she had to say which makes for an enlightening read.

Marta Buczkowska – Registered Dietitian

The main purpose of COP29

For the past 19 years, government representatives, scientists, activists, and members of the private and non-governmental sectors have convened annually at the United Nations (UN) Conference of the Parties (COP) to assess global progress in addressing climate change¹. This year, COP29 took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, from November 11 to 21, with a spotlight on climate financing, climate mitigation and adaptation funds, and energy transition.

While last year’s COP28 placed a strong emphasis on agriculture, this year’s agenda—led by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)—continued to highlight the pivotal role of transforming agri-food systems in combating the consequences of climate change. FAO organized a series of panels over the two weeks, with November 19 officially designated as Food, Agriculture, and Water Day.

But has this year’s COP delivered meaningful progress for agri-food systems worldwide? What are the most significant takeaways from the perspectives of agriculture and health? And, most importantly, will we see an acceleration in the transition towards sustainable food systems any time soon?

In this blog, I’ll provide a summary of the key discussions and insights about food systems shared during COP29 in Baku.

What role does the food system play in climate change discussions?

„The only way to reduce carbon emissions and restore nature on the path to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius is to transform our agrifood systems” – the Director-General of FAO, QU Dongyu said in his opening remarks.

Even though the crucial role of agrifood systems in climate mitigation efforts is clear, this sector remains thoroughly underfunded. It is estimated that to meet the global net-zero targets, food systems would require even $1 trillion annually by 2030². However, currently, just over 4% of total climate finance is directed toward food systems. Of this, 65% is allocated to developed countries, while only 20% supports small-scale transformation projects in developing nations. Alarmingly, less than 1% reaches individual farmers³.

Why do developing countries need more money to better cope with climate change?

As highlighted at various panels, this trend needs to drastically change if we want to have a chance to meet the Paris Agreement declarations⁴ and keep the global temperature raise below 1.5*C. Small scale farmers in developing countries receive the least financing, while experiencing the most drastic consequences of climate change and more often than not, being among 730mln people facing hunger today. In 2023 extreme weather conditions, such as floods and draughts, were the primary reason for experiencing hunger in 18 countries – home to over 77m people – most of them in Africa and South East Asia⁵. Beyond reduced yields, climate change has been shown to negatively impact nutritional quality of staple crops across Africa and South East Asia – including rice, wheat, barley or potatoes⁶. Raising temperatures can compromise cows’ ability to produce milk⁷, while increased carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations and changing nitrogen and phosphorus balance may lead to a reduction in protein content by up to 10-15% and an increase in starches and free sugars⁸– negatively affecting already compromised food security across local communities. Increased financing is also desperately needed for innovation, better feed or animal vaccines. As discussed during the ‘Decarbonizing the Food Value Chains: Transformative Financing for Rice, Dairy & Beed Sectors to Reduce Methane’ session, currently, 80% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from dairy sector comes from emerging markets. However, most existing programs designed to reduce these emissions are not only costly but are often tailored specifically to the needs and conditions of developed countries, making them less accessible or effective for emerging markets.

As wisely highlighted by one of the panelists – we need to have two separate discussions about sustainable food transformation in developed and developing countries – as the challenges we face are completely different; from increasing food security and nutrient adequacy for people living in the global South, to limiting meat and dairy consumption and shifting towards alternative protein sources in the global North.

Tools to accelerate sustainable transition proposed at COP29

Some of the most discussed solutions included:

• Digitalisation, such as using satellites, Artificial Intelligence- (AI) and machine learning-based solutions to better predict the weather conditions or measure soil quality.
• Incentivising the production of more climate-resilient crops – such as genetically modified rice, beans and legumes resilient to changing phosphorus and nitrogen balance in the soil & fortification and biofortification of staple foods to increase their nutritional adequacy.
• Including more plant-based and locally sourced foods in public procurement, such as school meals. Similar actions have already been taken both in higher- and lower-income countries – for example Brazil’s National School Feeding Program, requires 30% of its food procurement to be sourced from small, local farmers⁹, while Milan introduced green school canteen program prioritizing local and seasonal products and lower red meat consumption leading to a 43% reduction in CO2 emissions between 2015 and 2021^10-11
• Cultivated meat – development of this sector could bring benefits far beyond reducing agricultural GHG emission, including jobs or new technologies that could be applied to developing vaccines or developing synthetic materials like bioplastic from cultivated meat by-products.
• Voluntary carbon markets – markets where private actors (companies) buy and sell carbon credits that represent reduction or removals of GHG in the atmosphere¹². In this context, it is the markets where companies invest in agrifood systems solutions – often based in developing countries – to offset their emissions. Although this method has the potential to drive innovation and profit, most of the money is invested in the export-oriented goods, such as almonds or pistachios rather than local staple foods like sorghum or millet, making it less profitable for local farmers to participate in such projects.

Although many panelists presented innovative solutions, some discussions were sadly very much focused on maintaining the current status quo. The panel titled “Is Net-Zero food within reach? Tackling Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Production” discussed ‘sustainable production intensification’ or using cow’s feed containing methane inhibitors to reduce livestock methane emissions in the developed countries. It did not mention the need to reduce meat and dairy consumption already thoroughly discussed in numerous esteemed publications worldwide^13-14 – including in the British Dietetic Association’s One Blue Dot Reference Guide¹⁵.

Should the lack of discussions regarding limiting the consumption of animal-based products in favour of plant-based foods surprise us? At first glance – perhaps, but after looking closer at the COP attendee list, it becomes less shocking. According to The Guardian, more than 200 industrial farming lobbyist – including PepisiCo, Elanco or JBS – one of the biggest meat producers in the world, attended COP29. 40% of them travelled to Baku as part of countries’ delegations¹⁶ and presented among climate activists, scientists and world leaders. Their presence at the most important climate summit in the world raises significant concerns about the conflict of interest, as while studies unanimously conclude a drastic reduction in meat and dairy consumption in developed countries is desperately needed, the industry continues to lobby against tougher regulations and commitments.

Key COP29 outcomes

Throughout the last two weeks we have heard about a number of small to middle-scale agricultural projects introduced worldwide along with more and less innovative solutions to transform our food systems, but has COP29 brought about any specific commitments?

• On November 19 Climate and Clean Air Coalition consisting of COP29 presidency and United Nations Environment Programme launched the Reducing Methane from Organic Waste Declaration¹⁷ building up on the Global Methane Pledge launched at COP26.The declaration has been signed by 30 member states – including the United Kingdom, who together represent 47% global methane emissions from organic waste¹⁸.
• COP Presidency and FAO launched the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers¹⁷ – a platform to empower farmers and local communities to introduce change and to help politicians identify opportunities for future policies. It also seeks to strengthen rural communities, with a particular focus on women empowerment. 

This year’s COP has shown us that hundreds of thousands of innovative projects are driving the transition toward more sustainable food systems worldwide. Yet, the greatest challenge lies in scaling these initiatives and ensuring they reach those who need them most. Achieving this requires significant financing and collaboration among diverse stakeholders – including farmers, politicians, local communities, scientists and activists, and the courage to confront powerful lobbying forces that continue to defend the status quo.

The question remains: will global leaders rise to the occasion, or will the opportunity to transform our food systems slip through our fingers? I guess we will learn the answer in the upcoming years. We’d love to hear your thoughts—what do you think needs to happen to drive meaningful change?

References

1. United Nations Climate Change. Conference of the Parties (COP). https://unfccc.int/process/bodies/supreme-bodies/conference-of-the-parties-cop
2. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). COP29: FAO says agrifood systems transformation holds solutions for the climate crisis. https://www.fao.org/newsroom/detail/cop29–fao-says-agrifood-systems-transformation-holds-solutions-for-the-climate-crisis/en
3. Barbara Buchner BN, Rajashree Padmanabhi, Sean Stout, Costanza Strinati, Dharshan Wignarajah, Gaoyi Miao, Jake Connolly and Nikita Marini. Global Landscape of Climate Finance 2023. Vol. 56. 2023. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/global-landscape-of-climate-finance-2023/
4. THE PARIS AGREEMENT. https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/parisagreement_publication.pdf
5. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Global Report on Food Crises: Acute hunger remains persistently high in 59 countries with 1 in 5 people assessed in need of critical urgent action. https://www.fao.org/newsroom/detail/global-report-on-food-crises—acute-hunger-remains-persistently-high-in-59-countries-with-1-in-5-people-assessed-in-need-of-critical-urgent-action/en
6. Victor Owino CK, Beatrice Ekesa, Megan E. Parker, Laina Ewoldt, Nanna Roos, Warren T. Lee, Daniel Tome. The impact of climate change on food systems, diet quality, nutrition, and health outcomes: A narrative review. Front Clim. 2022;4doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2022.941842
7. Gauly M, Ammer S. Review: Challenges for dairy cow production systems arising from climate changes. Animal. 2020/01/01/ 2020;14:s196-s203. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731119003239
8. Taub DR, Miller B, Allen H. Effects of elevated CO2 on the protein concentration of food crops: a meta-analysis. Global Change Biology. 2008;14(3):565-575. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01511.x
9. Sidaner E, Balaban D, Burlandy L. The Brazilian school feeding programme: an example of an integrated programme in support of food and nutrition security. Public Health Nutr. Jun 2013;16(6):989-94. doi:10.1017/s1368980012005101
10. SCHOOL MEALS – the transformative potential of urban food policies. 2024.
11. Maryam Rezaei NM. Beyond nutrition: Can school feeding address climate and food system challenges? ODI Global2024.
12. The Integrity Council of Voluntary Carbon Markets. https://icvcm.org/voluntary-carbon-market-explained/
13. Hedenus F, Wirsenius S, Johansson DJA. The importance of reduced meat and dairy consumption for meeting stringent climate change targets. Climatic Change. 2014/05/01 2014;124(1):79-91. doi:10.1007/s10584-014-1104-5
14. Willett W, Rockström J, Loken B, et al. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT&#x2013;<em>Lancet</em> Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. The Lancet. 2019;393(10170):447-492. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31788-4
15. British Dietetic Association (BDA). One Blue Dot. Eating patterns for health and environmental sustainability. Vol. 92. 2020. https://www.bda.uk.com/static/539e2268-7991-4d24-b9ee867c1b2808fc/a1283104-a0dd-476b-bda723452ae93870/one%20blue%20dot%20reference%20guide.pdf
16. Sherrington R. Hundreds of lobbyists for industrial farming attend Cop29 climate summit. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/nov/19/hundreds-of-lobbyists-for-industrial-farming-attend-cop29-climate-summit
17. Countries Representing Nearly 50% of Global Methane Emissions From Organic Waste Pledge to Reduce Emissions From Sector | Day Nine – Food, Water and Agriculture Day. 2024. https://cop29.az/en/media-hub/news/countries-representing-nearly-50-of-global-methane-emissions-from-organic-waste-pledge-to-reduce-emissions-from-sector
18. Action on Climate Change. COP29 – Transforming Agri-Food Systems. 2024.