Integrating food policies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase resilience
The C40 Food Systems Network supports citywide efforts to create and implement integrated food policies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase resilience, and deliver positive public health benefits outcomes.
Focus areas:
- Food Procurement
Using procurement for public facilities such as school canteens, hospitals, elderly homes and civic buildings to foster more sustainable and healthy diets. - Food Environment
Transforming the social and physical environment that affect the types of food available within neighbourhoods, the affordability of food and the nutrition information that people have access to. This includes food marketing to encourage and inform better consumer choices. - Food Waste
Addressing food loss and waste to facilitate the recovery and redistribution of food for people in need and also implement solutions for the reuse of food waste. - Regenerative agriculture
Promoting regenerative urban agriculture to increase food security, decrease production emissions and close yield gaps. - Governance
Supporting cities to develop food strategies, include food systems in their climate action plans and food boards and councils for inter-departmental and external coordination.
The Food Systems Network supports the ambitions of the C40 Good Food Cities Accelerator, launched at the 2019 C40 World Mayors Summit. Cities that are part of the accelerator commit to working with residents to achieve a “Planetary Health Diet” for all by 2030, with balanced and nutritious food reflective of the culture, geography and demography of residents.
Participants work towards this goal through the following measures:
- Source food for cities that follow the Planetary Health Diet, ideally from organic agriculture.
- Encourage an overall increase in the consumption of healthy, plant-based foods, steering away from unsustainable and unhealthy diets.
- Strive to cut food loss and waste by 50%, measured from a 2015 baseline.
- Within two years of endorsing this accelerator, collaborate with residents, businesses, public institutions, and other organisations to create a shared strategy for implementing these measures. Ensure that the strategy aims to achieve the goals inclusively and equitably and integrate strategy aims into Climate Action Plans.
Each city that signs on has crafted an action plan detailing baseline figures, and an analysis of environmental, health, and economic co-benefits where available. Signatories commit to regularly reporting on their progress.
Learn about the Good Food Cities Accelerator and cities’ progress in delivering on their accelerator commitments.