The Role of Agriculture in Reaching Climate Boundaries
Agriculture plays a critical role in the challenge of staying within planetary boundaries, as it accounts for about one-third of the contributions to climate change, land degradation, and water use. Livestock farming, in particular, has a significant impact on greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, the agricultural sector faces a major task in reducing its environmental footprint.
"Caring for the Environment is Mandatory"
Ensuring the future viability of the dairy sector depends on three pillars: sustainability, innovation, and transparency. Decarbonizing the milk and dairy value chain is essential to reducing its environmental impact. As Serena Aboutboul from Neste emphasized, sustainability is “a major macro force, that is here to stay”. Danone’s CEO Antoine de Saint Affrique echoed optimism on sustainability, highlighting the company’s efforts in regenerative agriculture and methane reduction—many of their farmers are nearing climate neutrality. However, discussions raised the critical issue of who bears the cost of sustainability transformation. Farmers, who produce 100% of our food, are responsible for 30% of emissions but receive only 4% of financing. Sodiaal also pointed out that transitioning requires significant investment—3 billion euros for upstream measures and an additional 10 million euros in incentives for farmers driving positive change.
The Challenge of Transparency and Trust
The dairy industry faces a significant reputational challenge, with Danone’s CEO acknowledging that the sector is often perceived as having a negative impact on the climate. There’s a growing lack of trust in the livestock sector due to concerns over greenwashing. Dr Bruce Campbell, Chief Innovation Strategist at Clim-East raised the question: will the livestock industry become the next oil or tobacco industry? To overcome this, the need for genuine engagement with stakeholders is critical—sharing transparent, verifiable data is essential to rebuild trust and avoid the pitfalls of misleading or wrong sustainability claims.
Methods and Tools for Measuring Sustainability
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was presented as a key methodology, with dedicated sessions emphasizing its importance in addressing environmental impacts consistently. LCA is particularly useful in cases with co-products, like milk and meat, where environmental impact allocation is crucial. However, there are still gaps in the current approach, such as the exclusion of carbon sequestration and the lack of integration for mitigation technologies.
The IDF Carbon Footprint Verification Tool focuses on accurate allocation of emissions. Additionally, MILCA, a protocol for incorporating mitigation technologies into LCA, aims to establish a consistent approach for estimating carbon reduction from new technologies. This is essential for demonstrating real progress to stakeholders, avoiding accusations of greenwashing, and fostering trust by showcasing concrete climate actions. It can also help generate carbon credits, which are recognized as the one of the primary sources of incentive for carbon reduction performance.
There is a growing need to harmonize methodologies and standards across the industry. The Climate Farm Demo Project is already reviewing different carbon methodologies, and a similar approach is needed for biodiversity. The call to simplify sustainability processes was echoed by Karli Reimer of Ducks Unlimited Canada, noting that MRV (Measurement, Reporting, and Verification) systems are often complex due to regulatory requirements and data inputs.
Currently, there’s a recognized need to go beyond reporting. It's not enough to establish a baseline—implementation, monitoring, and supporting the transition are equally important. There is also the question of how to support and fund farmers for maintaining good practices while incentivizing the adoption of new ones.
The Importance of Local Context and Regional Specificity
One key takeaway from the event was the importance of considering local and regional contexts when addressing sustainability challenges. The forum gathered a diverse geographic representation, with speakers and attendees from various countries outside Europe such as Australia, India, or again the USA. While many speakers were from France, due to the event's location, India took center stage as the future leader in dairy market for the next 20 years. One trend focuses on traceability through the Digital Livestock Mission, which aims at allowing products to be traced back to individual animals. However, balancing economic support for farmers with reducing greenhouse gas emissions remains a challenge, as dairy production is crucial for both farmer livelihoods and national nutrition.
Known Solutions and the Path Forward
Several well-established solutions were discussed, including limiting land cover changes by reducing deforestation and restoring peatlands, reducing energy consumption, and transforming farming systems to increase yields and improve efficiency in greenhouse gas emissions. Innovations are needed to reduce enteric fermentation and improve pasture and manure management, with technology playing a critical role. Yet, it was estimated that only 20% of the technology needed for climate change mitigation are already available. Reducing food waste and shifting to diets with lower meat consumption—since meat meals can emit 50 times more greenhouse gases than lentil meals—were also emphasized.
Collaboration was a recurring theme throughout the discussions. Katie Anderson from the Environmental Defense Fund in the US presented the Dairy Methane Action Alliance, launched with major companies like Danone and Starbucks, which aims to enhance transparency and support methane reduction through action plans. The approach builds on existing, scientifically validated frameworks, with a focus on accounting for methane emissions, developing region-specific strategies and disclosing results.
Missing Elements in the Discussion
Notably absent from the discussions were two critical topics: the quality and verification of data, and the role of regulation. If methodologies and frameworks were largely discussed, data quality and data verification, essential for tracking progress and ensuring transparency, were not addressed. Similarly, regulation—whether as a challenge or a driver of sustainability—received little attention, possibly due to the global nature of the event. One exception was a case study from the U.S., where the value of a voluntary approach to sustainability was highlighted over a regulatory one. The Farmers Smart initiative emphasized that if sustainability measures don’t work for farmers, they won’t work for the climate, underscoring the importance of aligning environmental goals with economic performance of the agricultural community.
Conclusion
The event covered a wide range of topics over several sessions, with significant attention also given to the health benefits of milk. One key regulatory issue mentioned was the upcoming EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Certification (CRCF) Regulation, which is still under development. The specifics—timeline, scope, and targets—remain unclear, but it’s an area that will require close monitoring.
A recurring theme throughout the discussions was the importance of collaboration. The need for partnerships, alliances, and collective efforts was emphasized as essential for driving meaningful sustainable future for the dairy sector. Let’s do this!