Developing a pathway for food systems transformation

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics argues for the creation of a comprehensive, quantitative global pathway for food systems transformation, similar to the IEA's energy sector roadmap. It highlights that while food systems contribute over 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, existing frameworks are fragmented, lack legal enforceability, and often omit critical areas such as the reduction of animal-sourced product consumption and biodiversity targets.

• Food systems contribute more than 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet there is no comprehensive pathway with clear targets and timelines to reduce these to net zero while simultaneously meeting nature, health, and nutrition goals.
• Existing food system roadmaps are insufficient; for example, the FAO's roadmap for achieving SDG 2 within a 1.5°C limit fails to address the need to reduce animal-sourced product production and consumption, promotes agricultural intensification, and lacks key biodiversity and nature targets.
• There are at least 55 relevant targets for sustainable food systems derived from academic literature and global frameworks like the Paris Agreement, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), but these exist in a confusing landscape with overlaps and a lack of legal enforceability.
• There is a significant funding gap for food system transformation, with the Climate Policy Institute estimating a need for USD 1.1 trillion annually, and a 2023 UNEP Finance Initiative report indicating a gap of up to USD 350 billion per year by 2030.
• Implementation of agrifood targets is lagging; less than half of agrifood system emissions are addressed by concrete mitigation actions in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and overall hunger levels have increased over the last five years.
• Despite implementation gaps, global goals have spurred national successes: Nepal's 2015-2035 Agriculture Development Strategy helped double agricultural land productivity and reduce child stunting (41.5% to 31.5%) between 2010 and 2020, while Brazil saw an 85% drop in severe food insecurity between 2022 and 2023.

APA

Team, Z. (2025). Developing a pathway for food systems transformation. Zero Carbon Analytics. https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/insights/briefings/developing-a-pathway-for-food-systems-transformation/

Chicago

Team, ZCA. Developing a pathway for food systems transformation. Zero Carbon Analytics, 2025. https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/insights/briefings/developing-a-pathway-for-food-systems-transformation/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Team |first1=ZCA |title=Developing a pathway for food systems transformation |publisher=Zero Carbon Analytics |date=14 July 2025 |url=https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/insights/briefings/developing-a-pathway-for-food-systems-transformation/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{team2025developing, author = {Team, ZCA}, title = {{Developing a pathway for food systems transformation}}, institution = {Zero Carbon Analytics}, year = {2025}, month = jul, url = {https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/insights/briefings/developing-a-pathway-for-food-systems-transformation/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }