Agriculture in an International Climate Change Agreement

The report examines the role of agriculture within UNFCCC negotiations, highlighting its unique position as a sector where mitigation and adaptation are intertwined. It identifies key areas of consensus, such as the link between agriculture and food security, while detailing points of contention between developed and developing nations regarding trade implications, the principle of common but differentiated responsibility (CBDR), and the use of carbon markets. The document argues for a 'triple dividend' approach that simultaneously improves food security, adaptive capacity, and emission reductions.

• Agriculture is a critical sector for climate negotiations because it is both a significant source of emissions and highly vulnerable to climate impacts. It directly accounts for 14 per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions annually, with an additional 17 per cent coming from land-use changes like deforestation for agricultural expansion.
• There is a general consensus among Parties that agriculture is unique due to its fundamental role in food security, meaning mitigation efforts must not penalize areas that need to increase production to feed a growing global population.
• Developing countries express significant concern that agricultural sectoral approaches could be used to justify unilateral trade measures or restrictions on agricultural products based on climate-related standards.
• A major point of contention is whether agriculture should be treated as a stand-alone item or remain under the 'sectoral approaches' agenda. Developed countries have pushed for a separate treatment to disentangle agriculture from the divisive issue of bunker fuels and to address it more holistically.
• There is disagreement over the application of common but differentiated responsibility (CBDR). Developing countries want CBDR to apply to all sectors under Article 4.1(c), while some developed countries are reluctant to extend this principle to sectors like bunker fuels.
• The report advocates for a 'triple dividend' in agricultural agreements, which would integrate goals to increase food security, improve adaptive capacity, and reduce emissions, particularly to support smallholder farmers in poorer nations.

APA

Murphy, D., Cosbey, A., & Hove, H. (2011). Agriculture in an International Climate Change Agreement. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_security_agriculture.pdf

Chicago

Murphy, Deborah, Aaron Cosbey, and Hilary Hove. Agriculture in an International Climate Change Agreement. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2011. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_security_agriculture.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Murphy |first1=Deborah |last2=Cosbey |first2=Aaron |last3=Hove |first3=Hilary |title=Agriculture in an International Climate Change Agreement |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=November 2011 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_security_agriculture.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{murphy2011agriculture, author = {Murphy, Deborah and Cosbey, Aaron and Hove, Hilary}, title = {{Agriculture in an International Climate Change Agreement}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2011}, month = nov, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_security_agriculture.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }