We need to talk about our global food system.
Our food system is a heavy contributor to the planetary crises we face. Paradoxically, it’s also the first victim when the climate changes, water sources dry up, biodiversity declines and nutrients disappear from the soil, all leading to food insecurity and growing inequality. This was reason enough for us to join the Plant Based Treaty at the UNFCCC COP28 Climate Conference to advocate for a swift transition towards a food system that is not only ecologically safe but also socially just.
In the months before the conference, we conducted a scientific literature study on the current state of the climate, evaluated the impact of the global food system against the planetary boundary framework and analysed the role the global food system can play in mitigation and adaptation efforts. Together with the rest of the PBT team, we presented the full ‘Safe and Just’ report at the COP28 conference – what an opportunity!
Some key insights:
- Current climate models make critical assumptions in their temperature trajectories, including continuous absorption of Earth’s natural carbon sinks while the first cracks are already showing, heavy reliance on current early-stage negative emission technologies and unproven carbon removal techniques, and that the global food system will “magically” transition from being a from carbon source to being a carbon sink (from +4 GtCO2 to -5 GtCO2) within the next 30 years.
- The global food system stands as the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitting sector and is a leading driver of biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation, excessive freshwater use, and waterway pollution from nitrogen and phosphorus overuse.
- Food emissions alone are enough to put the 1.5C-2C targets out of reach, risking triggering feedback loops, tipping points and potentially cascading effects.
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Thank you, Plant Based Treaty, for the opportunity to go to COP28 and for advocating for a food system that is not only ecologically safe but also socially just by including intergenerational, intragenerational and interspecies justice. Also, thank you, Steven George, for your valuable collaboration in researching, evaluating, and documenting our findings.
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