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REPORT
October 2022
Smoke & Mirrors
Examining competing framings of food system sustainability: agroecology, regenerative agriculture, and nature-based solutions
This page is automatically translated from the English original using DeepL and may contain errors.
In its second report on food systems governance, IPES-Food analyzes three concepts currently vying for attention: ‘agroecology’, ‘nature-based solutions’, and ‘regenerative agriculture’. But, while often grouped together, these terms can imply very different things:
- ‘Nature-based solutions’ are rapidly gaining traction in international summits. But the concept lacks an agreed definition and a transformative vision. It is often bundled with risky, unproven carbon offsetting schemes. The result is dilution of food system transformation.
- ‘Regenerative agriculture’ is less prominent in policy spaces. While sustainable food system actors use it to emphasize regenerating natural resources; some leading agrifood businesses (including Walmart, Pepsi and Cargill) are invoking ‘regenerative agriculture’ in their corporate sustainability schemes – often in conjunction with unproven carbon offsetting schemes, stripped of social justice dimensions.
- ‘Agroecology’, a more comprehensive pathway towards food system sustainability, has been clearly defined through inclusive governance processes. But despite its conceptual maturity, it is still being sidelined in food systems, climate, and biodiversity summits.
IPES-Food calls to reject solutions that lack definitions, exploit ambiguity and mask agribusiness as usual. Getting food systems on the global agenda isn’t enough: we must ensure inclusive global processes based on a shared and comprehensive understanding of food system transformation.
Molly Anderson, IPES-Food expert and Chair in Food Studies at Middlebury College
Rapidly transitioning to more sustainable and resilient food systems is vital if we are to limit global warming and prevent mass crop failures. Yet in our study of international negotiations, undefined terms like ‘nature-based solutions’ are being deployed to keep the focus on vague aspirations – it’s really just another form of greenwashing. True food system solutions emerge through global, deliberative, democratic processes, and agroecology is the best solution that meets that criteria.
Molly Anderson, IPES-Food expert and Chair in Food Studies at Middlebury College
Melissa Leach, IPES-Food expert and Director of the Institute of Development Studies
There’s a battle of ideas over the future of food systems. Very loose terms like ‘nature-based solutions’ are being bandied about in international summits without clear definitions, and they’re open to being mobilized in the interests of all kinds of agendas. At worst they are a cover for green grabs that undermine people’s rights and threaten the land and resources they depend on. COP27 must be really careful about the use of these ambiguous terms and reject solutions that are not clearly defined.
Melissa Leach, IPES-Food expert and Director of the Institute of Development Studies
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