Ignored at COP21, sustainable agriculture is vital to climate mitigation

Published on 28 January 2016, this blog from EurActiv France considers that farming is responsible for 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions, but COP21 and the Paris Agreement failed to acknowledge the sector’s impact and the positive role it could play. From the field to the plate, via the food industry and distributors, the agricultural sector has an important role to play in climate change. The only agricultural solution presented at the COP 21 was the French '4 per 1,000' initiative, a plan to use specific techniques to sequester carbon in the soils. In order to halve its GHG emissions by 2050, the agricultural sector will have to radically change the way it works. Some commentators consider that agroecology can provide an important part of the solution by giving back autonomy to farmers, developing circular and collaborative economies and promoting local food chains.