Mars Partners with World’s Leading Food & Farming Businesses to Launch Action Plan to Scale Regenerative Farming, Warning Speed of Progress ‘Must Triple’ to Tackle the Impacts of Climate Change

The Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) Agribusiness Task Force has today released its action plan focused on how to scale regenerative farming – an approach which aims to cut carbon emissions while seeking to promote and improve soil health and biodiversity.
The report – produced by the 12-strong cross-industry Task Force – highlights an urgent need for consistent metrics, better government policy incentives and a transformation of sourcing to spread the cost of transition to more sustainable practices.
It comes after new analysis by sustainability analysts Systemiq revealed regenerative farming is growing but the rate must triple to deliver against the planet’s need to limit climate change to 1.5 degrees.
Grant Reid, Task Force Chair and Outgoing Mars CEO, said the rate of progress was ‘far too slow’ and he hoped the report would inspire the sector to help make the economics of regenerative farming work for farmers.

McLean, VA (November 3, 2022) — Mars, Incorporated, together with a group of the world’s largest and most influential agribusiness companies and organizations, has today launched an action plan to scale regenerative farming globally to tackle the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss.

The SMI Agribusiness Task Force’s report “Scaling Regenerative Farming: an action plan” warns that adoption rates are currently lagging far behind the rate needed to effectively tackle climate change. Fresh analysis by Systemiq has revealed that regenerative farming – while expanding its footprint over recent years – must triple its rate of growth to deliver against the world’s need to limit climate change to 1.5 degrees. It needs to make up at least 40% of global cropland by 2030, up from around 15% today.

The Task Force calls for common metrics and market-based financial incentives for environmental outcomes, targeted government policy and an overhaul of food sourcing – all to make regenerative agriculture a ‘no brainer’ business decision for farmers.

Chaired by Outgoing Mars CEO Grant Reid, the Task Force is comprised of executives from many of the world’s largest and most influential agribusiness companies and organizations, united by a common ambition to enable regenerative farming to become mainstream: Bayer, HowGood, Indigo Agriculture, Mars, McCain Foods, McDonald’s, Mondelez, Olam, PepsiCo, Sustainable Food Trust, Waitrose & Partners and Yara International.

Grant Reid, Task Force Chair and Outgoing CEO at Mars, said: “These are unprecedented times with supply chains under enormous pressure and the impacts of climate change all too real. Regenerative farming is a critical part of the solution, and our report shows all too clearly that – despite pockets of great work – adoption rates are far too slow as the short-term economic case for change is not compelling enough for farmers.

“As an industry, we need to address these areas with urgency if we are to hit our net zero commitments and protect against future supply-chain disruption.”

Investing in climate smart and regenerative agriculture is an important part of Mars’ ambitions to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its full value chain by 2050, while also doing its part to protect soil health and productivity.

With raw materials accounting for around 70% of the business’ emissions, scaling up climate smart and regenerative agriculture, in addition to preventing deforestation and land-use change, will be vital in its work to meaningfully reduce emissions.

Regenerative farming is an approach that aims to build soil health and fertility, sequester carbon and reduce emissions, enhance watershed quality and increase biodiversity while also improving farmer livelihoods and resilience.

The Task Force focused its work on three specific value chains (wheat in the U.S., basmati rice in India and potatoes in the U.K.) with a view to identifying learnings that could be scaled to other crops and geographies with similar characteristics.

It details five key areas which it believes require urgent action to make the economics of regenerative farming more appealing to farmers. These are:

Agree common metrics for environmental outcomes
Build farmers’ income from environmental outcomes such as carbon reduction and removal
Create mechanisms to share the cost of transition with farmers
Ensure government policy enables and rewards farmers for transition
Develop new sourcing models to spread the cost of transition

The Task Force is set to continue its work into 2023 to drive the implementation of the report’s Big 5 recommendations. Further discussions with key stakeholders will take place next week at COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh.

Andrew Morlet, CEO, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, commented: “It is very encouraging to see leading businesses coming together to agree on key actions they can take to support farmers in the transition to regenerative farming systems. Regenerating nature is a fundamental principle of the circular economy, and transforming the way in which we produce and consume food is one of the most powerful ways in which we can do this. Recognizing the key role food design plays in creating the demand for regeneratively sourced ingredients is at the heart of our vision of circular design for food, and we are excited to see this included in the action plan. We look forward to working together on this agenda and seeing the insights in the Agribusiness Taskforce Action Plan come to fruition.”

Arne Cartridge, Interim Executive Director, The Food Collective, said: “Scaling regenerative farming is key as we need to shift to a nature positive food future. The work by the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s Agribusiness Taskforce in addressing the hurdles and moving us to action is therefore one that we all should rally behind. The report provides an excellent overview of the key barriers to transition to regenerative food production. Specifically, the ‘Big Five’ provides a clear direction of travel on where pre-competitive collaboration across the full food value chain is deeply needed. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with SMI Agribusiness Taskforce towards this shared mission of scaling regenerative food systems with farmers at the center.”

Launched at The World Economic Forum 2020 Annual Meeting in Davos, and under the mandate of the Terra Carta, the Sustainable Markets Initiative's mission is to build a coordinated global effort to enable the private sector to accelerate the transition to a sustainable future.

For further information on the Sustainable Markets Initiative Agribusiness Task Force, visit www.sustainable-markets.org/taskforces/agribusiness-task-force/(Opens a new window).

ABOUT MARS, INCORPORATED
For more than a century, Mars, Incorporated, has been driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. This idea is at the center of who we have always been as a global, family-owned business. Today, Mars is transforming, innovating and evolving in ways that affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the world around us.   

Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of confectionery, food, and pet care products and services, we employ 133,000 dedicated Associates who are all moving in the same direction: forward. With $40 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world's best-loved brands, including DOVE®, EXTRA®, M&M's®, MILKY WAY®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, ORBIT®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, SKITTLES®, BEN'S ORIGINAL™, WHISKAS®, COCOAVIA®, and 5™; and take care of half of the world's pets through our nutrition, health and services businesses, including AniCura, Banfield Pet Hospitals™, BluePearl®, Linnaeus, and VCA™. 

We know we can only be truly successful if our partners and the communities in which we operate prosper as well. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire our Associates to take action every day to help create a world tomorrow in which the planet, its people and pets can thrive. 

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ABOUT THE SUSTAINABLE MARKETS INITIATIVE
In his former role as His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, His Majesty King Charles III launched the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) at Davos in January 2020. The SMI is a network of global CEOs across industries working together to build prosperous and sustainable economies that generate long-term value through the balanced integration of natural, social, human, and financial capital. These global CEOs see themselves as the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ helping to lead their industries onto a more ambitious, accelerated, and sustainable trajectory. Read more: www.sustainable-markets.org(Opens a new window)

ABOUT THE TERRA CARTA
In his former role as His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, His Majesty King Charles III launched the Terra Carta at the One Planet Summit in January 2021. The Terra Carta serves as the mandate for the SMI and provides a practical roadmap for acceleration towards an ambitious and sustainable future; one that will harness the power of Nature combined with the transformative power, innovation, and resources of the private sector. Currently there are over 500 CEO-level supporters, including the first C40 city of Athens, Greece. The Terra Carta has served as the inspiration for the Terra Carta Design Lab. The Terra Carta is a roadmap for public, private, and philanthropic collaboration and open to all countries, cities, companies, organizations, and schools who wish to support it. Read more: www.sustainable-markets.org/terra-carta(Opens a new window)

ABOUT THE AGRIBUSINESS TASK FORCE
The Agribusiness Task Force has been designed to accelerate regenerative farming into becoming the predominant agricultural system in the world. The Task Force is comprised of executives from many of the world’s largest and most influential agribusiness companies and organizations, united by a common ambition to harness their unique capabilities and influence, to enable regenerative farming to become mainstream. Find out more here: https://www.sustainable-markets.org/taskforces/agribusiness-task-force/(Opens a new window)

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