CoAct Database

Food System Transformation: A sustainable and healthy nature-based solution

Transforming food systems to provide sustainable and healthy foods in alignment with the planetary boundaries, is essential for the future of our planet and humanity. With consensus on the scientific targets for healthy diets and sustainable food production that has emerged from the EAT-Lancet report, we have clear guidance on how to produce food that is good for people and planet. The global food system exerts enormous environmental pressures accounting for around 30% of GHG emissions, over 70% of freshwater withdrawals, and 40% of land use. It is also the principal driver of deforestation and biodiversity loss. By 2050, global red meat demand is expected to rise by 76%, a trend that will make it impossible to achieve the 1.5◦C Paris Agreement target. Beyond red meat, food production needs to transform from a major CO2 emitter to a major carbon sink to achieve the Paris Agreement (see Figure 1). Unsustainable and unhealthy diets also present major threats to human health worldwide. Governments around the world face rapidly increasing public health costs due to poor nutrition. One in nine people (approximately 821 million) are hungry with children among the most vulnerable. To date, limited attention has been given to food systems as an arena for climate action. Herein lies a critical opportunity to combat climate change while improving human health and reducing economic and social costs associated with disease and poor health. A global shift to healthy diets will not only save lives, it will also reduce land use pressure from food production, thereby opening up opportunities for reforestation and afforestation and reducing CO2 emissions by nearly 37%. A transformation of the global food system has the potential to sequester nearly 10 Gt of CO2 by 2100 which is fundamental to achieving the Paris Agreement.