Making the hidden costs of our food systems visible

A new article by the IKI CLIF team, published in the journal “Welternährung”, explains the problem of “hidden costs” in our food systems and highlights the role of True Cost Accounting as a lever for transformation. Global food systems are unsustainable and the price of our food covers only about one third of the costs incurred if the real but hidden social, environmental and health costs to society are included. As currently neither prices nor business accounts take these costs into account, false incentives for investors and citizens are created leading to market distortions. The new German government has taken an important first step by stating in the coalition agreement to integrate ecological and social values into existing accounting systems in the agricultural and food sector.

In the article, TMG proposes to consider TCA as an innovative toolbox for food systems transformation to calculate hidden costs, develop transformation pathways and to move away from the imperfect metric of GDP for measuring prosperity.