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Introduction: The world’s energy and food systems need transformation to meet growing demand, become inclusive, secure, sustainable, and align with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement. Agri-food systems consume 30% of the world's energy, with a third of their greenhouse gas emissions stemming from energy use. This interconnectedness means energy transitions will impact food systems and vice versa.
Key Challenges
- Energy Use in Agri-food Systems: Agri-food systems' energy consumption varies globally, with significant disparities between developing and developed countries.
- Dependence on Fossil Fuels: Current patterns show a heavy reliance on fossil fuels, particularly in developing regions.
- Energy Access and Productivity: Limited access to modern energy restricts productivity and resilience in agri-food systems, particularly in Africa.
Opportunities with Renewable Energy
- Solar Irrigation: Widely adopted, it improves water access and resilience to changing rainfall, raising incomes by over 50% in India and increasing yields by a third in Rwanda.
- Renewables-based Agro-processing: Offers cost-effective alternatives to fossil fuels, reducing environmental impact and promoting decentralized infrastructure.
- Cold Storage and Refrigeration: Renewable energy solutions can prevent food spoilage, especially in regions with underdeveloped cold storage, improving income and market access for farmers.
- Bioenergy: Utilizes biomass by-products from agri-food activities to produce energy, enhancing sustainability and energy self-sufficiency in several sectors.
Recommendations
- Data and Information Improvement: Develop tools for guiding renewable energy investments and informing policy, including mapping optimal locations.
- Access to Finance: Enhance financing solutions for both energy supply enterprises and end-users in food systems, leveraging climate finance and local capital.
- Holistic Approaches: Promote integrated food-energy systems and the water-energy-food nexus to leverage synergies and minimize competition.
- Cross-sector Perspectives: Incorporate cross-sectoral coordination into national and regional strategies for energy and food system transformation.
- Low-risk, High-impact Actions: Focus on actions like reducing food losses, enhancing circular economy effects, and linking energy for food with energy for health.
- Innovation Promotion: Support technology and energy-efficient appliance development through innovation funds and multi-stakeholder partnerships, ensuring operational and maintenance services.