Summary of COP28: What does industry need to know?

Until now, livestock had seen little proper attention in climate change negotiations, so COP28 proved to be a turning point for bringing food security to front-of-mind for governments worldwide to be united in their focus, prioritising food and agriculture and highlighting crucial links between climate change, farming and the need for combined solutions.

Food and Agriculture had its own dedicated thematic day and several pavilions, and the event started with more than 130 countries signing up to the Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems and Climate Action which rose even further during the summit.

The Big 5 takeaways GMA have summarised for industry from the COP28 summit over the last two weeks, are as below. These can also be found as standalone tiles on Trello here.

1. FAO livestock report released at COP28: Pathways towards lower emissions

On Friday 8th December, the FAO released their report to COP28: Pathways towards lower emissions, A global assessment of the greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation options from livestock agrifood systems Contrary to the speculation of what the report would include, the FAO COP28 roadmap notes the “imperative to chart pathways to lower the greenhouse gas emissions produced by the world’s livestock systems in the face of a growing global population and a projected 20 percent increase in demand for terrestrial animal products by 2050.”

FAO’s roadmap focuses on mitigation to enable the livestock sector to contribute its share to the efforts of realistic global food systems, and “to limit the global temperature increase to well below 2 degrees Celsius. Options to produce more with less emissions are available for all regions and production systems.“ Furthermore, the report also discusses the many positive ways livestock contributes to environment.

2. Food industry giants unveil new global regenerative agriculture framework

The Sustainable Markets Initiative's Agribusiness Task Force has launched a new framework in the hopes of unleashing trillions of dollars in support of regenerative farming practices. Supporting businesses include Mars, McCain Foods, McDonald's and Waitrose.

The new framework aims to make regenerative farming financially viable and achievable, with key projects in outlined in regions including the UK and the US. The strategy is focused on the environmental challenges of the current food system, and its contribution to nature loss. The Task Force highlights that regenerative farming could contribute a third of the land-based climate action required by 2030, and we need to tackle the economic barriers hindering its adoption among farmers to succeed.

The Agribusiness Task Force’s chair Grant Reid said on the ground at COP: “Taking farming back to its roots it’s one of the only ways we can guarantee farming and global food supply chains can survive for generations to come.” The framework proposed is founded on new funding and sourcing models, use common metrics, suggested government policy changes and a plan to create new revenue streams for farmers. It will also outline plans to create new revenue streams for farmers by enabling them to earn carbon credits and training to farmers adopting regenerative practices, as well as incentivising landowners to encourage these techniques among tenants. The Task Force is actively sourcing relevant projects worldwide to demonstrate the viability of its concept, engaging both industry leaders and financial institutions.

3. An unprecedented mobilization of support for food and agriculture, including $3.1 billion for a sustainable food systems

A resounding generic success to the COP28 summit was the unprecedented mobilisation of funding support for food and agriculture, including $3.1 billion for a sustainable food systems. The United Arab Emirates, the host of the COP28 summit, as well as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, launched a $200 million partnership focused on agricultural research, bringing agricultural innovation to usable scale, and funding technical assistance to implement the goals of sustainable food production and equitable access to food.

More than $2.5 billion has also been mobilised to support the food-climate agenda, said Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, the UAE climate minister and COP28 food systems leader live from the ground in Dubai. National governments, the World Bank, and the Gates Foundation also committed a total of $890 million to CGIAR (Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research). The funding will be used to support smallholder farmers through research on technologies and techniques which build resilient and sustainable food systems, such as land management techniques.

The International Food Policy Research Institute estimated at COP that transforming food systems completely, to align with nature, development and climate goals, will require $350 billion in annual investment by 2030, so achievements at COP have made a strong start in mobilising the funding needed.

4. Endorsement by over 150 countries for the COP28 Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action

Farmers were acknowledged as being on the frontlines of the climate crisis during COP28 and are in a unique position to support climate action – now, before it is too late. Acknowledging that changes need to make economic sense for farmers, negotiations at COP focussed on the adaptation which makes sense for the climate, also needing to make sense financially for producers.

COP28’s Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action therefore, received growing support, rising to 158 countries by the close of the summit. “We celebrate that food has been put at the centre of this conference. We cannot talk about environmental issues without considering agriculture,” said Fernando Costa, Uruguay Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries.

These countries committed to adapting and transforming food systems moving forward and including food and land use targets in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) & National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) by 2025. Actions will target sustainable food production, food waste, improved land management and diet to try to reduce emissions and deliver nature / climate as well as consumer health benefits.

A comprehensive toolkit to help national policymakers translate global climate and food commitments into local actions has been launched. The COP28 Agriculture, Food and Climate Action Toolkit here, was produced by a taskforce which included Global Alliance for the Future of Food, FAO and CIAT - convened by the UAE COP28 Presidency and will be a valuable resource for countries as they transform their food systems to both mitigate and adapt to climate change.

5. Food and Agriculture is one of 11 Declarations with broad country support

Making food systems work for front-line communities: A broad coalition of 200 farmers’ groups, frontline communities, businesses, philanthropic organisations and cities signed the Non-State Actors Call to Action for Transforming Food Systems for People, Nature, and Climate. This is intended to complement the Emirates Declaration, supporting the implementation and reinforcing the role of governments in transforming food systems. The signatories, including C40 Cities and the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) also committed to actions such as supporting frontline food system actors and respecting the rights of indigenous peoples when making food system investments.

Food systems transformation was certainly a core agenda item at COP28. What started as a few voices on the margins of COPs just a couple of years ago has garnered a voice and turned into a summit-wide day of pledges and announcements held on 10th December, leading to the above declaration and board country support. The five governments that make up the initial alliance are co-chairs Brazil, Norway and Sierra Leone, joined by Cambodia and Rwanda as the founding members of the alliance.

These governments have committed to “reorienting policies, practices and investment priorities to deliver better food systems outcomes for people, nature and climate”, according to the press release you can read here. The declaration will need leadership from governments, and implementation will take collaboration from all countries across the whole food system.

We hope this is helpful to see the main key take-outs for industry and what this will mean in terms of funding and implementation. We look forward to staying connected on the implications of these outcomes and keeping you posted on how industry is regarded in climate and food systems negotiations moving forwards.