Agri-Food Systems Summit Highlights

The Agri-Food Systems Summit highlighted the critical intersections of innovation, finance, and policy in transforming global agri-food systems. Discussions underscored the need for accessible climate finance, particularly for smallholder farmers and marginalised communities, who currently receive only a fraction of available funding. Speakers emphasised the transformative potential of data-driven agriculture, regenerative practices, and cutting-edge innovations like AI and bioinformatics, which promise to enhance productivity, sustainability, and resilience. Collaboration emerged as a recurring theme, with calls for stronger partnerships between governments, financial institutions, and the private sector to scale solutions and support farmer-led transitions. 

A just transition was central to the dialogue, advocating for inclusive approaches that empower farmers, preserve regional farming diversity, and address systemic challenges such as inequitable value chains and market volatility. Key sessions explored actionable strategies, from repurposing agricultural subsidies to enabling fair trade practices and improving emissions transparency. 

The message was clear: achieving sustainable food systems requires coordinated efforts among stakeholders, combining innovation, finance, and policy to unlock the full potential of agri-food systems in addressing climate change and ensuring global food security. 

From the Ground Up - Farmer-led Pathways to a Just Transition 

Dennis Rangi, Director General, Development, at CABI, moderated the panel consisting of A.G. Kawamura, Founding Co-Chair of Solutions from the Land; Dr. Andrea Porro, Secretary General of World Farmers' Organisation; Julie Greene, Chief Sustainability Officer of Olam Agri; and Vincent Chauvet, Mayor of Autun and member of the European Committee of the Regions. The session shared a vision and mission to ensure that farmers have the support required to utilise their knowledge to drive change.  

Dr. Andrea Porro, shared a key message, “Farmers are on the frontline of climate change, but also they consider themselves an integral part of the solution to address, mitigate and adapt to climate change all over the world.” On the challenges farmers face, including lack of access to finance, Dr. Porro concluded, “Farmers have the willingness, the expertise, and resilience to lead this transition. Now it’s up to government, financial institutions and business to champion their effort, align resources, and support the changes that they are ready to make for a resilient food system from the ground up.”   

Julie Greene discussed how Olam Agri, a trader of agricultural commodities such as rice, soy and wheat, work with smallholder farmers to support them in implementing more resilient farming systems and regenerative practices. Combining traditional approaches with modern techniques enables the development of accessible and suitable best practice. She noted, “Of course, all of this requires financing. I think that financing can happen at several levels. To help valorise some of these innovations, at the most basic ground level, you have the side where we support farmers by establishing village savings and loans associations. Again, harnessing local concepts of lending and associations, but building skills so that it enables them to better develop their farm enterprises and manage those funds.” 

Financing Climate Action through Agriculture and Food Systems 

Global climate goals are unattainable without agri-food system solutions. As COP29 negotiations continue to grapple with coming to a new climate finance goal, the lack of funding for agrifood systems, in particular for smallholder farmers, must be rectified.   

Kaveh Zahedi, Director (Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment) at the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO); Jim Andrew, Chief Sustainability Officer of PepsiCo; Sung-Ah Kyun, Head of Climate Policy at EBRD; and Satya S. Tripathi, Secretary-General of Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet, joined the panel Financing Climate Action through Agriculture and Food Systems, moderated by Emeline Fellus, Senior Director (Agriculture & Food) at WBCSD. 

On barriers precluding agri-food systems in driving climate action, Kaveh Zahedi said, “We are still battling against the very negative narrative against agriculture in the climate space. For 20 years agriculture wasn’t part of the UNFCCC conversation at all. We have been working hard to change that narrative, to really advocate for the agri-food system solutions and getting climate finance investments going towards them,” additionally, he noted that, “We are not seeing agriculture and food systems integrated into national plans enough. Around 97% mention agriculture, but much fewer translate that into tangible targets.” 

Echoing this, Jim Andrews added, “There’s all sorts of ways that money can flow to farmers; there’s grants, there’s green bonds, there’s carbon credits, there’s climate funds. I think the question is, are they at scale? And how quick can we go? Finance will be a huge determinant, ultimately, if we don’t have money to de-risk the transition, progress is going to be slow.” 

Agri-Food Innovation - Pioneering Solutions for Climate Action 

Moderated by Jake Fiennes, leading innovators and experts—Bruce Friedrich, President of The Good Food Institute; Dr. Silvia Massruhá, President of Embrapa; and Katre Olmez, Chief Operating Officer of the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens—discussed how technology, collaboration, and new business models are pushing the boundaries of sustainability, enhancing food security, and building resilience in the face of climate change. 

Dr. Silvia Massruha provided insight into Embrapa’s research and innovation in the Brazilian agriculture landscape, “You are developing new varieties for different crops, different production systems to increase productivity, but you have to preserve the natural resources. Then we bring in the measures, the indicators to show how you can produce and preserve at the same time. Then you have another challenge to train and incentivise farmers to use more sustainable practices, and you need public policies to incentivise the training. You have to work with the innovation ecosystems with different stakeholders to provide better solutions.” 

Future Food Systems Hackathon  

The Future Food Systems Hackathon, comprising two rounds of fifteen, in-depth, small group discussions, explored cutting-edge solutions to address challenges in global agri-food systems, focussing on sustainability, resilience, and equity. Topics ranged from harnessing storytelling to drive public engagement on climate action, to scaling adaptation strategies and fostering farmer-business partnerships. Participants discussed the critical role of transparency in building trust across supply chains, ways to incentivise biodiversity restoration, and strategies to empower youth and women in climate-resilient agriculture. Conversations underscored the urgency of aligning food systems with climate goals while ensuring inclusive, practical solutions for all.   

Empowering Women to Lead the Agri-Food Revolution 

Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director of the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security; first U.S. Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues; and Co-founder of Vital Voices Global Partnership, provided the closing keynote address on the vital topic of the role of women in agri-food systems.  

Women comprise of over 40% of agricultural workers but own less than 10-20% of the land. Over a decade ago, the FAO released its study Women in Agriculture, finding that If women had the same access to productive resources as their male counterparts, yields on their farms would increase by 20–30%.  

Ambassador Verveer stated, “Gender equality is not just the right thing to do. It is the smart and effective thing to do. It is crucial to agriculture and food security. Women aren’t just victims of circumstances, but agents of change.” 

She continued by laying out a path forward, including integrating gender responsive commitments into NDCs, providing access to green technologies and renewable energy, providing gender responsive climate finance, building capacity and climate entrepreneurship for women and creating knowledge exchanges on best practice.  

Concluding the address, Ambassador Verveer ended with a key message, “Women are indispensable to agricultural sustainability and food security. Ensuring their access to resources and opportunities is a strategic necessity for envisioning environmental sustainability now and into the future.” 

To watch these integral discussions, visit: Agenda | Agri-Food Systems Summit | COP29