There is an urgent need to rethink the way we produce, distribute, and consume food worldwide and to build sustainable, resilient, healthy, and just agri-food systems. The multiple crises of climate change, Covid-19, armed conflicts, and soaring costs linked to social and environmental externalities (the ‘4 Cs’) reinforced existing weaknesses of global food security and have had a disproportionate impact on the functioning of agri-food systems, particularly for the most vulnerable regions and people. These four interlinked crises pose profound additional challenges for the transformation process as they introduce variables that have not previously been considered in discussions of transformation. The agri-food system has the unique distinction of being at once a casualty, an underlying cause, and a potential solution to these crises. 

The 4 Cs provide an opportunity and an impetus (a ‘perfect storm’) to think about the proposed pathways for a transformation of agri-food systems. At international level discussions on food systems transformation have led to efforts to develop a better understanding of the problem and initial proposals for international action to tackle the 4Cs through a food systems lens.Since the 4 Cs are global crises, their solution requires concerted international effort addressing the lack of an international agreement dedicated to agri-food systems transformation. 

In late March, TMG – Töpfer, Müller, Gaßner GmbH and partners will launch the report series, FORESEE (4C) – The Transformation of Agri-Food Systems in Times of Multiple Crises (4Cs: Climate, Covid-19, Conflict, Cost of externalities).

More information will be provided soon.