This year’s COP 28, the UN Climate Conference taking place in Dubai between Nov. 30 and Dec. 10 will address extreme weather, food insecurity, and food system emissions to push world leaders and governments towards climate action, with food and agriculture as the central issue to discuss. 

At the event, 70 farmer representatives will be present as the delegation of the World Farmers Organization (WFO). 

The organization said its President, Arnold Puech d’Alissac, will be actively participating in the conference and bringing a strong united voice to the negotiations of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Food Systems and Climate Action Agenda of the COP 28 UAE Presidency. 

It also announced that during the event WFO delegates will get involved in several panels and roundtable sessions to reiterate that farmers hold an essential part of the solution to climate change is imperative to enable them to fulfill their role in achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement, the group adds

According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), farming and land use, livestock production, household food consumption and waste, and energy used in the farm and food retail sectors - account for 31% of human-made greenhouse gas.

U.S. participation at COP 28

U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken made his remarks at the event on Dec. 1 and announced the U.S. will be joining the Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action in an effort “to better align efforts on agriculture and food systems with climate action.”

“A growing population means the global demand for food is likely to increase by an estimated 50% by the year 2050.  An escalating climate crisis means that crop yields could drop by as much as 30% over that same period.  So do the math:  We’ll be feeding more and more people on a planet where growing food will become harder and harder,” said Blinken.

Blinken highlighted the multiple efforts made by the U.S. to tackle global hunger by rethinking the way food is produced and insisted on maintaining the focus on ending climate-driven hunger.

The power of agrifood system solutions, which are themselves climate solutions, is that they help to build resilience, adapt to climate change, and reduce GHG emissions while safeguarding biodiversity and ensuring food security for all, says the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.