Publications

The global food system will need to produce food more
efficiently and sustainably to achieve the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) and meet the 2°C climate
commitments of the Paris Agreement. As climate change
affects food systems, governments, food and agriculture
companies, and public and private investors need to
better identify and address the numerous climate- related
risks they face. This can also be an inflection point to
take advantage of new investment opportunities that the
transformation to low-carbon and resilient food systems
presents. Climate-smart investments to transform food
systems, however, are not yet at scale. This will require
addressing core market failures to unlocking private sector
financing from food and agriculture companies, domestic
and international financial institutions, and specialized
investors. Whilst this paper highlights the clear need and
role for the former, it explores in greater depth innovative
strategies to address the core market failures of the latter: 1)
lack of deep pipeline of bankable projects, today; 2) high
investment risk and lack of primary data/information
asymmetries; and 3) lack of intermediation to efficiently
connect different pools of capital to investment.

Against this backdrop, CCAFS and its partners highlight a
diverse set of policy options, innovative financial solutions, and
strategies for how government, food and agriculture companies,
public and private donors and investors can support the
transformation to low-carbon and resilient food systems.