DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — It's already difficult for world leaders to figure out the future of coal, oil and gas in a warming world. What about the future of bread and milk?
The food system accounts for around 30 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions from farm to fork to landfill, and is a major cause of biodiversity loss. Small farmers in poor countries, on the brink of subsistence, are among the most vulnerable to climate hazards. And hunger has increased over the past three years, as the coronavirus pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have disrupted supply chains.
So how do we feed ourselves without further harming the planet or worsening rising levels of hunger? This year's UN climate summit faced this question.
Changing the way the world eats is fraught with difficulties. Rising food prices can overthrow governments. Farmers can be a powerful political pressure group. Changing eating habits can be complicated and trade in agricultural commodities is influential.
However, at this year's climate summit, more than two-thirds of the world's countries backed an agreement to restructure the global food system, although it is vague, lacks concrete goals and is non-binding.
The UN food agency issued a landmark report outlining what would be needed to align the global food system with the goal of limiting average temperature rise to manageable levels.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said that would mean reducing food waste by half and methane emissions from livestock by 25 percent, both by 2030. It would also require planting a wider variety diverse crops.
The FAO roadmap means taking different actions in different countries. In North America, it means encouraging citizens to consume less meat and dairy products, food experts said. In sub-Saharan African countries, it means increasing agricultural productivity. All countries must reduce food loss and waste.
The Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems and Climate Action commits countries to include agricultural emissions in their next round of climate goals, in 2025. It does not contain specific policies.
To date, 154 countries have joined. India, long sensitive to any global agreement affecting food security, resisted.
By: Somini Sengupta
BBC-NEWS-SRC: http://www.nytsyn.com/subscribed/stories/7038348, IMPORTING DATE: 2023-12-20 20:20:08
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