At the U.N. Climate Change Conference, a significant development emerged from a panel discussion featuring leaders from the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), alongside representatives from Food Tank, the Future Economy Forum, and the FAIRR Initiative. The IIGCC announced an update to a key sustainable investment framework that will now emphasize the critical role of the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sector within the financial sector’s approach to sustainability.

In this pivotal session, experts including Ertharin Cousin from Food Systems for the Future, Jeremy Coller from FAIRR, Mahesh Roy from IIGCC, and Zitouni Ould-Dada from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, highlighted the urgent need for transformative investments in global food systems.

Mahesh Roy, serving as the Director of Investor Strategies Programme at IIGCC, revealed that the Net Zero Investment Framework (NZIF) is set to classify the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors as high impact. This adjustment signals a paradigm shift, aligning investor expectations for these industries with those traditionally held for fossil fuel companies, due to their significant contributions to greenhouse gas emissions.

The NZIF, established as the predominant net zero framework for the investment community, assists investors in setting and achieving net zero targets and planning transitions. This strategic move to reclassify the agriculture sector acknowledges its considerable emissions output and underscores the necessity for targeted action towards achieving a sustainable future.

Introduced in 2021 and crafted by over 110 investors managing assets worth around US$34 trillion, the NZIF provides a comprehensive strategy for portfolio decarbonization and the promotion of climate solutions, aiming for net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner. This initiative marks a critical step in aligning financial investment with the urgent needs of climate action and sustainability in the agriculture sector.