More than three-quarters of the over 500 billion dollars in agricultural subsidies given annually worldwide to agricultural producers primarily distort prices and can be harmful to nature and health. This is the main conclusion of a new UN report, released at the start of the UN Biodiversity Summit.
The report from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) calls for financial support for food production not to be reduced or abolished, but to be used differently.
The three UN agencies say that the international community risks failing to meet the UN Millennium Goals for 2030, as well as the Paris Climate Agreement. Global agricultural support amounts to 15 percent of the total value of agricultural production. Within ten years, this will more than triple to $1,759 billion.
To meet the climate goals of the Paris Agreement, a shift in support is necessary, especially in high-income countries, focusing on reducing the meat and dairy industry. According to the UN agencies, that sector accounts for 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
In low-income countries, governments should consider redirecting their support away from toxic pesticides and fertilizers or the expansion of monocultures.
Current support mostly consists of price incentives such as import tariffs and export subsidies, but also includes fiscal subsidies tied to a specific raw material or input.
The report states that these measures are inefficient, distort food prices, harm people’s health, damage the environment, and are often unfair, with large agricultural companies favored over small farmers.
Last year, up to 811 million people worldwide suffered from chronic hunger, and nearly one in three people globally (2.37 billion) lacked access to sufficient food throughout the year. In 2019, about three billion people, in every region of the world, could not afford a healthy diet, as was established last week at the UN Food Summit.
The reports note that although most agricultural support today has negative effects, approximately 110 billion dollars support infrastructure, research, and development, benefiting the overall food and agriculture sector.