Report of the Finnish Climate Change Panel: Climate-smart agriculture will reduce emissions, respond to changes in food demand and improve crisis resilience

Climate-smart agriculture refers to sustainable food production that significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions without undermining self-sufficiency. The report published today by the Finnish Climate Change Panel offers policy-makers ways of achieving the necessary systemic change.

Seven recommendations for developing food production

In a near future, Finnish agricultural production must respond to a growing demand for plant-based food, reduce emissions from arable land and livestock production, reduce the volume of foreign fertilisers and fuels needed, and adapt better to the impacts of climate change.

“The essential idea of climate-smart agriculture is finding and tapping synergies between climate change mitigation and adaptation, productivity growth and security of supply,” says Heikki Lehtonen, Finnish Climate Change Panel member and Research Professor at Natural Resources Institute Finland.

The Finnish Climate Change Panel recommends the following in order to develop food production:

1. Dietary guidance for following nutrition recommendations should be provided.
2. The production and use of plant proteins and other plant-based products should be increased, while livestock production should be reduced.
3. The progress of climate action in the entire food industry production chain should be ensured. 
4. Yields and other productivity should be improved, promoting carbon farming and climate change adaptation, among other things.
5. Emissions from cultivated peatlands should be reduced extensively.
6. Cellular agriculture should be developed and its wider introduction should be promoted.
7. The use of fossil energy in agriculture should be reduced. 

The preconditions for implementing these recommendations include reallocating agricultural subsidies and increasing incentives – in synchrony with other funding as well as food industry programmes and the farmers participating in them – as well carbon pricing and farmers' access to voluntary carbon and nature value markets. Carbon pricing should influence the operation of farms. To achieve this, substantially more resources for climate change mitigation and adaptation on farms will be required, enabling farmers to adapt to changes and grasp opportunities. For this, farmers' peer support and networks as well as expert support will be needed to ensure cost-effective targeting and implementation of measures on different farms and in various regions.

In addition to reducing emissions, climate-smart agriculture will also bring other benefits. Plant-based diets in keeping with nutrition requirements will improve public health. Reduced dependence on such as imported fertilisers or fossil fuels will improve crisis resilience. More climate-smart agriculture will also help foster biodiversity and support water protection.

The multidisciplinary report sums up and complements previous studies

The Finnish Climate Change Panel's recommendations are based on a synthesis report that examines Finland’s possibilities of introducing climate-smart agricultural production.  

Among other things, the report discusses the possibilities of transitioning to plant-based diets endorsed by nutrition recommendations and the nutritional adequacy of a mostly plant-based diet. It also gives an overview of sustainability programmes and progress made with emissions reduction measures in the food industry. The outlook for cellular cultivation is assessed on the basis of literature and earlier reports. The possibilities for emissions reduction and carbon sequestration on arable lands are analysed especially from the viewpoint of carbon farming and re-wetting of cultivated peatlands.

Based on the scenario work, the report examines different development trajectories for Finnish agriculture until 2055. The scenario analysis complements previous studies, especially regarding dietary changes, productivity development, changes in demand and policy instruments as well as export opportunities.

“We hope that the results will help structure and unify the existing knowledge base and highlight evidence-based visions and options for developing the agri-food economy, making it possible to achieve strong progress in climate action,” says Heikki Lehtonen.

Further information:

Finnish Climate Change Panel report: Suuntana ilmastotehokas maatalous Suomessa (with English abstract)

Heikki Lehtonen, Finnish Climate Change Panel member, Research Professor at Natural Resources Institute Finland, tel. +358 29 532 6316