This year we celebrate World Food Day with a harsh reality. We are faced with the fragility of our global food system. The outlook for the food industry is vulnerable to continued supply chain disruptions, crop and livestock losses, energy crises, and rising costs of living.
The climate crisis compounds this reality, with many communities in East and Southern Africa experiencing extreme weather events such as severe droughts and floods. Further, in this context, food security becomes a concern and further threatens access to affordable nutrition for all.
Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the planet was already undergoing interesting population dynamics. In the global North, aging populations have had, and continue to affect, the capacities of many economies to produce food efficiently. The implications of a sharp decline in the working-age population, coupled with changing immigration policies, have threatened the food industry.
Preventing food insecurity
In the Global South, population growth means increased demand for food, and consequently increased use of arable land and water. In order to tackle food insecurity and achieve the second United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to end hunger, ensure food security and improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture, a change in mindset is essential.
There is no known rational solution to this global crisis. However, there is a central rallying point that we can focus on to drive significant change, and it is proving successful in many pilots. That is, to protect and even restore the environment by implementing basic agricultural practices that can be adapted to the growing needs of the agricultural sector.
Sustainable agricultural practices
Regenerative agriculture, as it is known, is a set of sustainable agricultural practices that work in harmony with nature, both in terms of food quantity and quality. The approach is from indigenous practices used by ancient societies for centuries, and over the years, it has evolved to include cutting-edge technology to improve its effectiveness. The result is better raw materials for food production, which significantly reduces harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
A pilot project that has implemented these practices is the Skimelkrans Boerdery in South Africa’s Western Cape Province. The farm set to become South Africa’s and possibly Africa’s first zero-zero dairy farm by 2023 has co-opted agricultural practices in its day-to-day operations.
For example, the farm uses cutting in pastures, mixing different types of grass such as ryegrass and clover, accompanied by zero tillage, composting with cattle manure and using recycled water for irrigation. The effect is an earthquake. By processing manure as a natural fertilizer, the farm reduces the amount of carbon emitted by commercial fertilizer use. 1.36 kg is the average amount of carbon released into the atmosphere for every 1 kg of chemical fertilizer.
The amount of carbon sequestered in each hectare of land through crop photosynthesis and sequestration is 10 metric tons. Skimelkrans has an area of 600 hectares, which prevents about 600 tons of carbon from entering the atmosphere every year.
With all this, the production of milk from the farm increased by 11 percent and this milk goes into production products such as Nestlé Nespray, Nestlé Milo, Nestlé Culinary Milks and Nestlé. The fact that this is a local source further expands the positive impact of this approach, contributing to the local economy through agriculture and job creation.
Improving the farmer’s life
In efforts to reverse climate change, transitioning to regenerative agriculture is becoming more effective; It is also providing improved products and farmers’ livelihoods. To some extent, this transformation of food and agricultural systems is critical to directly address food insecurity, particularly in the economies of the Global South where increasing demand for affordable nutritious food is linked to land use.
Addressing SDG 2 will require collective action that focuses on the dual threat of climate change and food insecurity. For food producers, partnering with producers like the farming community is one way to truly unlock the power of food to improve the quality of life for everyone on this planet. Only then can we effectively curb food insecurity while protecting our planet.
