Scientific Publication

大食物观引领下低碳减排与粮食安全的协同发展:现状、挑战与对策

Abstract

The Greater Food approach implies a higher level of food security and puts forward higher requirements for agri-food system transformation in China.Meanwhile, the agri-food system has great potential for carbon sequestration and GHG emissions reduction, which can play an important role in achieving the goal of carbon neutrality.This paper aims to discuss how to achieve carbon neutrality in Chinese agri-food system under the Greater Food approach and further put forward the pathways of a win-win strategy of food security and a low-carbon agri-food system.Starting from the relation between the low-carbon agri-food system development and food security, this paper systematically analyzes the status quo, challenges, and pathways to achieve the goals of food security and low carbon.We find that the Greater Food approach oriented to demand provides a guideline for minimizing the trade-offs and identifying the synergy of food security and low-carbon agri-food systems.We conclude that transformation towards sustainable agri-food system can promote the realization of both goals.At present, the supply of major agri-food products in China can effectively meet the needs of Chinese residents.Meanwhile, China’s agri-food system had achieved its carbon neutrality in 2018,turning greenhouse gas emissions into a net carbon sink.However, with rising population and income in the future, the synergy between higher level of food security and low-carbon transformation of China’s agri-food system is still uncertain.Chinese agri-food system faces a number of challenges, including resource constraints, the dominance of smallholder farmers on the production side, unbalanced dietary structure, and sizable food loss and waste.The paper finally proposes the agri-food system transformation pathways under the Greater Food approach to overcome these challenges and achieve the win-win of lower GHG emissions and food security.