The 30th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change took place in Belém, Brazil, in November 2025 (COP30). It focussed on the support needed by developing nations to protect them from the impacts of climate change and to transition to clean energy. However, it is clear there is a wide gap between what the evidence suggests is necessary to reduce global warming and what is being delivered.
In this article we look at the challenges faced in the food industry and what measures will make a meaningful change to protect the long-term sustainability of our planet. Look out for a future article on packaging, it’s impact on climate change and the work the industry is doing to reduce it.
The background
Climate change is the long-term shift in temperature and weather patterns that arise through a combination of natural processes such as the sun’s activity or volcanic eruptions and the activity of humans. Human activities are believed to be the primary cause of climate change over the last two centuries as a consequence of heavy industrialisation, agricultural intensification and the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil.
Burning fossils fuels releases gases such as carbon dioxide and methane. These get stuck in the upper atmosphere and create what is called the greenhouse effect, trapping the sun’s heat and gradually increasing the earth’s temperature. For those wanting a gentle introduction to climate change take a look at an insightful 60 seconds video from the Royal Society on the basics of climate change. If you really want to get into the detail then the United Nations has a great climate action overview with links to delve deeper into the topic.
Virtually all aspects of human activity contribute to climate change including industry, agriculture, transport, buildings, land and energy use. The World Meteorological Society (WMS) reported that 2025 is set to become the third warmest year on record with average temperatures in January to August of 1.42 °C ± 0.12 °C above the pre-industrial average. The past 11 years will individually be the eleven warmest years on record, driven by the highest recorded level of greenhouse gases and ocean heat. The impacts of this can be seen in the increase in extreme global weather events resulting in social and economic disruption. To put a few figures on the changes, the concentration of carbon dioxide has increased from around 278 parts per million (ppm) in 1750 to 423ppm in 2024 and the long-term rate of sea-level rise increased to 4.1mm per year between 2016 and 2025 in comparison to 2.1mm per year between 1993 and 2002.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nation’s body for assessing the science related to climate change and it is generally recognised that limiting the global temperature increase to 1.5°C would prevent the worst climate impacts. However, recent assessments of the impact of current commitments to mitigate climate change by global nations indicate that temperatures will increase to 2.5°C by the end of the century.
Climate change and the food industry
It goes without saying that the food and agricultural industries have had an impact on climate change and climate change will, in turn, impact significantly on the food and agricultural industries in the future. It has been estimated that food systems are responsible for a third of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions with the majority of the contributions coming from agriculture and land use (71%) and the remaining from food supply chain activities including retail, transport, consumption, fuel production, waste management, industrial processes and packaging.
A meta-analysis of agricultural production systems reported that the most intensive greenhouse-gas emissions per kilogram of product were, in order of decreasing emissions, beef herd, lamb and mutton, dairy herd, prawns (farmed), cheese, pork, poultry, eggs, rice and milk. The challenge facing global agriculture is considerable given the estimate by one agriculture and land-use accounting system (Globagri-WRR Model) that agricultural land use will need to expand by over 3 billion hectares in order to meet the projected land demand for 2050. The increase in land use has the potential to dramatically increase greenhouse gas emissions (World Bank, 2020) unless mitigations are applied.
In addition to the extensive impact that food production has on greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, the production of food that is subsequently wasted also has an impact. In its Food Waste Index Report in 2024, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimated that 1.05bn tons of food available to consumers in 2022 was wasted at retail, food service or in the home. When added to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimate that 13% of food is lost in the global supply chain, this amounts to over a third of food being wasted. Consequently, food loss and waste account for 8-10% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions.
The impact of climate change on the food industry
The food and agriculture industries have a clear incentive to slow the progress of climate change as they are likely to be amongst the most significant industries impacted by global warming. In 2023, the UNEP’s extensive review of the climate risks in the agriculture sector considered both transition risks and physical risks. Key risks relating to the sector moving to net zero by 2025 included increased carbon price, public policy restrictions, competitive pressure from less carbon intensive producers and a public shift in preferences. Physical risks that were cited included droughts and heat stress threatening livestock, feed supplies and crop production, extreme storms and flooding, sea level rise impacting biodiversity, wildfires, ocean acidification and invasive species.
A report by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) on the impact of climate change on agriculture and food supply states a risk of air pollution damaging crops, plants and forest through reduced photosynthesis and increased sensitivity to disease. The potential impact on pollination with warmer temperatures and changing rain patterns risked impacting when plants bloomed and therefore when pollination took place. The report also highlighted the impact of rain and flooding in increasing agricultural runoff of nutrients, fertiliser and pesticides into water courses and rivers, causing a depletion of oxygen levels and an adverse impact on fish and shellfish. A more detailed assessment of climate change impacts in the United States has been published in the US Climate Resilience Toolkit’s Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5).
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reported on climate change as a driver of emerging risks for food and feed safety, plant and animal health and nutritional quality. The report emphasised the complexity of identifying clear risks given the number and diversity of hazards, the large uncertainties involved and the interconnections between the different areas. Nevertheless, it highlighted the potential for climate change to cause, enhance or modify “the occurrence and intensity of some food-borne diseases and to lead to the establishment of invasive alien species harmful to plant and animal health”.
The EFSA noted that climate change was “likely to drive the (re)emergence of new hazards, increase the exposure or the susceptibility to known hazards and change the levels of micronutrients and macronutrients in food and feed items”.
Climate change risk assessments relating to food systems have also been published by a number of other countries (United Kingdom; Australia).
Climate change action
Climate change presents a significant risk for society and the need to identify solutions has been recognised for many years. The United Nations identifies three broad categories of action; cutting emissions, adapting to climate impacts and financing required adjustments. There are also international frameworks that have been developed to achieve common agreements and commitments to tackle the issue. Uppermost are the Sustainable Development Goals, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.
Most businesses operate a sustainability plan, now commonly incorporated into a broader environment, social and governance (ESG) programme. These often include public commitments to reduce carbon emissions, a key driver of climate change through energy efficiency, the use of renewable sources and sourcing sustainable materials such as those of forestry origin and palm oil. Indeed, there is now a legal obligation in some countries to report on climate change. For example, in the UK, businesses of a certain size (>500 employees or >£500m turnover) must publish an annual report on the climate change governance, risks and opportunities in their annual reports and accounts.
EU law requires companies above a certain size to disclose information on risks and opportunities arising from social and environmental issues, and on the impact of their activities on people and the environment. There are also legislative measures in place (EU Timber Regulation; UK Timber Regulations) for specific drivers of climate change such as sourcing of timber products from unsustainable sources through unregulated deforestation. In addition, there are industry and non-governmental initiatives targeted at reducing impacts on climate change such as reducing waste (Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP)).
The widespread publication of sustainability and ESG plans has led to concerns regarding the reliability of self-reporting. Consequently, regulators have responded by developing legislation and/or defined rules for reporting (i.e. EU sustainability reporting standard, UK Sustainability Reporting Standards). Such regulations build on the standards developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).
Notwithstanding the legal requirements to manage or report on risks and opportunities that impact on climate change, it is generally recognised by companies that mitigation measures can have a beneficial impact on their business through reduced energy use and improved consumer sentiment. Consequently, it is rare to find any business without a strong sustainability or ESG plan that includes measures to reduce carbon emissions or indeed achieve a carbon neutral position within a defined timescale. To support these plans a number of service providers offer third-party certification standards for sustainability and ESG. Benchmarks for such programmes have been developed by the Sustainable Supply Chain Initiative (SSCI) of the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF).
I hope that this has given you some useful insight on the vast topic of climate change and helps you navigate your way through. Look out for the next article from BRCGS.
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AuthorAlec Kyriakides Independent Food Safety Consultant
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