- Firm
- Provisional
- Coming soon
- Revised
- Firm
- Provisional
- Coming soon
- Revised
How well are we doing?
Editor's note: We have recently refreshed and updated our data for all countries on the platform, as we revised the 21 policies we cover.
Sustainable agriculture and food systems are a key component of a green economy. By promoting healthy diets, minimising waste, reforming harmful subsidies and supporting sustainable production, they reduce environmental impacts while enhancing well-being.
All of the 41 countries reviewed for the Tracker have taken steps towards sustainable agriculture and food systems, although for some these efforts remain in their early stages, with limited commitments or national policies still at the proposal stage. At the forefront and setting the standard are Bangladesh and France. For Bangladesh, this represents its best-performing policy area. The country’s comprehensive National Food and Nutrition Security Policy Plan of Action aligns with SDGs 2 and 12, addresses a range of areas, and is supported by a coordination mechanism and monitoring framework.
Argentina warrants specific attention. Despite generally weak performance across most policy areas, it demonstrates comparatively stronger ambition in sustainable agriculture and food systems (alongside cross-sectoral planning and green transport). This is reflected in its National Climate Change Plan to 2030 and related sectoral strategies, which set quantified targets for emissions and irrigation efficiency, and in its participation in the FABLE Consortium, modelling pathways for agroecology and resource-efficient agriculture.
Facing greater challenges are countries like Costa Rica, Uganda and Saudi Arabia. While Costa Rica has launched its SDG-aligned Roadmap for Sustainable and Healthy Food Systems, its non-binding nature and lack of concrete legal or regulatory mechanisms means it functions more as a vision than an enforceable commitment.
The evidence is undeniable: transforming food systems is not only possible, it's essential to securing a safe, just and sustainable future for all.
About this policy
When people think about greening the economy, they rightly focus initially fossil fuels, industry and energy. These make up the bulk of our greenhouse gas emissions, but the our food systems also play a significant role. Between a quarter and a third of global emissions come from food, agriculture and land-use sectors - with high variation depending on how land-use is managed, national diets, and food consumption/waste. This implies this is a part of our economy where we can make real progress by everyone moving towards the most sustainable practices.
Sustainable agriculture and food systems strategies are becoming a more central to many governments green economy planning - building in part on national objectives around improving the natural environment, encouraging healthy diets (which often happen to be more sustainable), and also alignment with global Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets. SDG 2 sets targets around ending hunger, food security, nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture, while SDG 12 focuses on food loss, waste and subsidies as part of consumption and production systems.
Governments are starting to set out strong strategies focused on reform of agri-food subsidies that have high environmental costs, and beginning to incorporate more detailed ecological footprint data into sectoral planning. Many countries have long-running commitments to organic food production, and are new looking at further strategies that support regenerative agriculture. While others are focused on reducing chemical inputs and providing a stronger regulatory framework on health diets and access to fresh, low-footprint food. With meat consumption rising with income on all continents, helping consumers to make environmentally friendly substitutions, or integrated inherently more sustainable vegetarian or vegan food into their dietary choices, can make a big difference to long term ecological health.