Prioritising sustainable agriculture
Sustainable agriculture aids in economic development and provides the basis for livelihood for most people, including here in Malta. By reverting to sustainable practices, farmers can reduce their reliance on non-renewable energy, reduce the use of chemical pesticides and fertilisers and engage in methods that will lead to a lower dependency on scarce resources.
Unfortunately, today there is a declining interest in the sector in Malta, with latest data showing the number of registered agricultural holdings falling by around 6% in the last 10 years (2020: 10,449) and the agricultural labour force declining by a quarter from 18,212 persons in 2010 to 13,511 persons in 2020.
Reasons behind such trends could include preference towards working in less labour-intensive industries, competition through imports and competing land uses. To make matters worse, we have seen the negative effects of climate change on agriculture, through increasing soil erosion, lower yields and extreme weather events that are imposing threats on farmers’ livelihoods, our food supply and food security.
The Karonivia Joint Work on Agriculture, which refers to a landmark decision falling under the UNFCCC, recognises the “unique potential of agriculture in tackling climate change”, as linked to six topics, namely soils, water, nutrient use, livestock, methods that look into assessing adaptation, and lastly the socio-economic and food security dimensions for climate change. COP signatory parties have agreed to continue to work on sustainable agriculture by recognising the importance of using sustainable soil and management practices (e.g. crop rotation), sustainable production, and designing sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural systems to safeguard food security.
Since 2018, Malta has been included within the EIU’s Food Sustainability Index (FSI), which is based on 95 individual metrics that examine how food systems perform across three pillars: sustainable agriculture; nutritional challenges; and food loss & waste.
The FSI for Malta in 2021 indicates that the country has a “medium” sustainable agriculture performance, due to policies in place such as the Second Water Catchment Plan covering 2016-2021 and the National Agricultural Policy for the Maltese Islands for 2018-2028. The FSI indicates that Malta has room for improvement in the areas of food loss and waste - if such waste is eliminated, i.e. closing the waste gap, there is the possibility of effecting a circular loop. This is necessary in light of the local Circular Economy Strategy 2020-2030.
As shown in the UNEP Food Waste Index Report of 2021, Maltese households produce an average of 129 kg/ capita food waste in a year, one of the highest when compared to the average in Southern Europe at 90kg/ capita/ year. Food waste has a severe environmental impact that accounts for “8-10% of global Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions” (European Commission, 2022).
As an island, Malta is limited in its agricultural production and therefore, its food security is largely dependent on its imports, and hence implementing policies that can safeguard our basic food needs, whilst maintaining a sustainable agriculture sector, will be imperative (e.g. farm-to-fork strategies; organic farming). The current geo-political crisis has led to supply chain disruptions, increased food inflation, and is also imposing risks to food security.
Therefore, it is crucial that sustainable agriculture is given more importance by farmers, civil society and policy makers, through promotion of the sector on a national basis (promoting local produce, machinery, systems and technological developments).
The entire agriculture and food ecosystem is facing a fundamental shift that is reshaping the future of food. Digitalisation and AI have the potential to aid farmers in adapting their farming practices to address emerging issues and conditions in various countries.
These could include investing in precision agriculture practices, digital-enabled products, biotechnology, fleet management and digital sensors, amongst others. Though the sector is already heavily-subsidised, further aid could help in this transformation. To this end, COP27 will further feature the prioritisation of sustainable agriculture practices that ultimately ensure resilience of the sector and food security.
Today, consumers are demanding business that is fair, safe, transparent and sustainable. EY takes a source-to-consume approach focusing on value creation, profit enhancement, transparent operations and corporate social responsibility to spark positive transformation in food and agriculture and help reframe the future of food. Additionally, EY can help to implement digital technologies, that will have a transformative effect leading to an improvement of farmer’s livelihoods.
Sustainability and climate change were discussed during this year’s EY-Parthenon’s Malta Future Realised Conference. For a recap of the event and access to the Malta Attractiveness Survey report visit: ey.com/en_mt/events/ malta-future-realised-2022.
Orlanda Grech (left) and Sarah Bulteel (right) are members of EY’s Sustainability team at EY Malta. This article forms part of a series of four articles in preparation for COP27, to be published in the coming weeks.
