By Didier Bergeret, sustainability director of The Consumer Goods Forum
At the current rate of progress, the world risks missing the 2030 deadline of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — a blueprint for how we achieve a better, fairer and greener world. We must do everything we can to get them back on track, and creating more resilient food systems is key.
Food-based agriculture accounts for over a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. Research from the UK’s University of Oxford shows that food production alone could push our planet past a temperature rise of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels — the goal of the Paris Agreement and an essential baseline for the SDGs. We cannot let this happen.
Due to the fundamental importance of the food and drink industry to meeting the world’s sustainability goals, the UN Secretary-General convenes a global Food Systems Stocktaking Summit every two years.
A review of the food, drink and agricultural industries’ progress towards meeting the SDGs, the stocktake is taking place in Rome, Italy, from the 24–26 of Jul. It is a vital opportunity to galvanise faster action across the food sector. We must accelerate progress towards a resilient and sustainable food system that will keep our planet liveable for future generations. Now is the moment for faster collective action.
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