‘Junk Agroecology’: The corporate capture of agroecology for a partial ecological transition without social justice

The report critiques 'junk agroecology,' a corporate-led interpretation of agroecology promoted by initiatives like the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI), the New Vision for Agriculture (NVA), and the New Food and Land Use Economy Coalition (FOLU). It argues that these entities use agroecological language to mask a commitment to 'productivism' and 'sustainable agricultural intensification,' focusing on increasing yields through technology and market inclusion rather than the redistribution of power and resources. The authors contrast this with a transformative vision of agroecology that emphasizes food sovereignty, social justice, and the rights of small-scale producers.

• The authors define 'junk agroecology' as a narrow vision of agroecology pushed by big business, some NGOs, and states that focuses only on addressing environmental harms of industrial agriculture while preserving the inequality and power imbalances of the current agrifood system.
• There is a fundamental distinction between agroecology and 'sustainable agricultural intensification'; the latter focuses on increasing productivity and output per unit of land and labour through technology, whereas agroecology emphasizes social justice, political transformation, and reduced external inputs.
• Three major worldwide public-private initiatives—the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI), the New Vision for Agriculture (NVA), and the New Food and Land Use Economy Coalition (FOLU)—are identified as key drivers of 'junk agroecology,' sharing a goal to 'turn smallholders into sustainable agribusinesses.'
• Corporate-led initiatives are driven by a 'technological-productivist obsession,' viewing the endless increase of food production and an uncritical reliance on technology as the primary solutions to hunger, which the authors argue ignores the systemic drivers of poverty and exclusion.
• Transnational agrifood corporations use 'inclusive business models' to integrate autonomous farmers, fishers, and pastoralists into global value chains they control, prioritizing 'inclusion' over the 'redistribution' of value and power.
• The report identifies a shift from state-based multilateralism to 'multistakeholderism,' a governance model where decisions are shaped by consultations that often give big business the upper hand in governing global food systems.

APA

Alonso-Fradejas, A., Forero, L. F., Ortega-Espès, D., Drago, M., & Chandrasekaran, K. (2020). ‘Junk Agroecology’: The corporate capture of agroecology for a partial ecological transition without social justice. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Junk-Agroecology-FOEI-TNI-Crocevia-executive-summary-ENG.pdf

Chicago

Alonso-Fradejas, Alberto, Lyda Fernanda Forero, Delphine Ortega-Espès, Martín Drago, and Kirtana Chandrasekaran. ‘Junk Agroecology’: The corporate capture of agroecology for a partial ecological transition without social justice. Friends of the Earth International, 2020. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Junk-Agroecology-FOEI-TNI-Crocevia-executive-summary-ENG.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Alonso-Fradejas |first1=Alberto |last2=Forero |first2=Lyda Fernanda |last3=Ortega-Espès |first3=Delphine |last4=Drago |first4=Martín |last5=Chandrasekaran |first5=Kirtana |title=‘Junk Agroecology’: The corporate capture of agroecology for a partial ecological transition without social justice |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=April 2020 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Junk-Agroecology-FOEI-TNI-Crocevia-executive-summary-ENG.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{alonsofradejas2020junk, author = {Alonso-Fradejas, Alberto and Forero, Lyda Fernanda and Ortega-Espès, Delphine and Drago, Martín and Chandrasekaran, Kirtana}, title = {{‘Junk Agroecology’: The corporate capture of agroecology for a partial ecological transition without social justice}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2020}, month = apr, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Junk-Agroecology-FOEI-TNI-Crocevia-executive-summary-ENG.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }