Replanting Agricultural Biodiversity in the CBD

The document highlights the critical role of agricultural biodiversity, contrasting the diversity of peasant food webs with the narrow focus of industrial food chains. It argues that while industrial agriculture is a primary driver of ecosystem destruction and climate change, peasant agriculture offers a solution for safeguarding biodiversity. The author contends that agricultural biodiversity has been sidelined within the CBD and must be brought back to the center of negotiations for the Global Biodiversity Framework.

• There is a stark contrast between the diversity of peasant-led agricultural systems and industrial food chains; peasant food webs have bred 7,000 domesticated plant species and 2.1 million varieties, whereas industrial chains rely on only 137 crop species, with 16 species providing 86% of global food production.
• Agricultural biodiversity has been marginalized within the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) over time, moving from a central role in the post-Rio years to being sidelined, particularly in the failure to meet the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
• Industrial agriculture and intensive livestock production are identified as the primary drivers of land use change and ecosystem destruction and contribute significantly to climate change, whereas peasant agriculture serves as a mechanism to nurture and safeguard biodiversity.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (n.d.). Replanting Agricultural Biodiversity in the CBD. https://www.foei.org/publication/replanting-agricultural-biodiversity-in-the-cbd/

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. Replanting Agricultural Biodiversity in the CBD. n.d. https://www.foei.org/publication/replanting-agricultural-biodiversity-in-the-cbd/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=Replanting Agricultural Biodiversity in the CBD |url=https://www.foei.org/publication/replanting-agricultural-biodiversity-in-the-cbd/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternationalndreplanting, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{Replanting Agricultural Biodiversity in the CBD}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, url = {https://www.foei.org/publication/replanting-agricultural-biodiversity-in-the-cbd/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }