Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs: "Climate Crisis-Induced Food Crisis More Severe Than COVID-19... Achieving Carbon Neutrality in Agriculture"

Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Holds Food and Agriculture Session at 2021 P4G Summit

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] At an expert discussion on agriculture held in conjunction with the P4G Seoul Green Future Summit, concerns were raised that the food crisis caused by climate change could inflict greater damage than COVID-19. Experts suggested that to overcome this, securing carbon-sustainable future food sources and strengthening international cooperation for achieving carbon neutrality in the agricultural sector are essential. Kim Hyun-soo, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of Korea, proposed the necessity of international cooperation to prevent the climate crisis from turning into a food crisis.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that it held the 'Food and Agriculture Session' during the '2021 P4G Seoul Green Future Summit,' which concluded on the 31st. The event was organized as a basic session of the climate and environment summit held for the first time in Korea since the government announced the 'Low Carbon Development Strategy' last December aiming for '2050 Carbon Neutrality.' P4G focuses on five key areas including food and agriculture, water, energy, circular economy, and cities. At the session, Minister Kim, Qu Dongyu, Director-General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Agnes Kalibata, Special Envoy for the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, and Rasmus Prehn, Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries of Denmark, emphasized cooperation for global food security and green transformation of agriculture through keynote speeches.

Minister Kim suggested that the food crisis caused by the climate crisis could be more severe than COVID-19 and called for enhanced national efforts and global cooperation. He stated, "Carbon neutrality is a significant challenge and opportunity for Korea’s agriculture and rural sectors, and we are preparing a roadmap to achieve carbon neutrality in these sectors. Going forward, agriculture must undergo an innovative transformation process that actively reduces greenhouse gas emissions throughout the entire production, distribution, and consumption process of agricultural products," emphasizing the point.

In the first part, hosted by the P4G Secretariat, startup project cases were introduced, and discussions were held on farming methods in developing countries that can generate profits while responding to climate change, models for recycling discarded food resources, and ways to induce investment in food system transformation. In the second part, chaired by Kim Hyo-eun, Deputy Secretary-General of the Global Green Growth Institute, cases of public-private partnerships in developing countries achieving carbon neutrality and food security in response to climate change were discussed. Deputy Secretary-General Kim pointed out, "About one-quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions come from food production, yet about one-third of all food produced worldwide is wasted, while approximately one billion people suffer from hunger every day."

A domestic small and medium venture startup (Jigukin Company), recognized for developing and selling processed foods using imperfect and surplus domestic agricultural products and selected as the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs’ 'A-Ventures of the Month' in January last year, was also introduced. Lee Sang-man, Director of the International Cooperation Bureau at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said, "We discussed the importance of public-private partnerships for building sustainable food systems and transitioning to carbon neutrality in agriculture, practical measures and cases, and presented directions for developing public-private partnership models in the food and agriculture sector. This will serve as a reference for future agricultural cooperation projects in developing countries, including official development assistance (ODA)."

Meanwhile, the outcomes of the discussions at this Food and Agriculture Session are expected to be continuously discussed at the upcoming G20 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting scheduled for September and the UN Food Systems Summit.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.