Global food systems and agriculture play a key role to end extreme poverty, deliver food security, and foster an inclusive and sustainable development. Agriculture is the main support for the livelihoods of more than 500 million smallholders worldwide – many of whom are women – it also feeds 8 billion people and drives economic activity, accounting for 4% of the global gross domestic product (GDP).

The increasing demand for food to fuel a population projected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050 continues to incentivize agricultural expansion, converting land and forests areas and being the main driver of deforestation and the associated loss of biodiversity. While trade can help achieve sustainable and resilient food systems, it is also known to contribute to and exacerbate negative impacts on nature and people. However, in an economy with over 50% of the global GDP dependent upon nature, trade can and should be part of the solution to protect and restore nature.

To tackle this global challenge, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is hosting 3 Regional Stakeholders Consultations in 2023, one in each region: Asia, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean. The Consultations will be held as part of UNEP’s partnernship in the Trade, Development and the Environment Hub (TRADE Hub) project.

The Consultations will convene a diversity of stakeholders to discuss priorities, challenges and opportunities in the region, and together identify and provide recommendations for impact-driven and actionable solutions to move towards a sustainable, fair and inclusive nature-positive trading system that supports countries to: i) achieve sustainable supply chains of agricultural commodities, ii) facilitate market access to all stakeholders in compliance with regulations that commit to decouple commodities from deforestation, e.g. EUDR, and iii) advance national plans for sustainable socio-economic development.

In a joint collaboration between UNEP and the International Trade Center (ITC), the first Regional Consultation in Latin America and the Caribbean will take place on:

• Date and time: 27 and 28 March 2023, 10:00 – 16:00 BRT 
• Hybrid format: in-person in Sao Paulo, Brazil*; and online
• Interpretation: in Portuguese, Spanish and English
• Venue: to be announced soon

The Latin America and Caribbean Stakeholders Consultation will aim to:

• Deliver actions-oriented recommendations to enable solutions and strengthen multi-stakeholder cooperation for an inclusive and fair nature-positive trading system that promotes sustainable supply chains of agricultural commodities, focused on: soybean, beef and cocoa.
• Identify and increase understanding of emerging opportunities for the region at the biodiversity and trade policy interface, including regional trade agreements and the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

The Consultation will gather:

• Government entities leading agendas at the trade and environment nexus, focused on agriculture, land management and forestry, biodiversity, finance, economy, industry, and related areas.
• Policymakers active in the environment and trade fora.
• Private sector: smallholders, trading cooperatives, MSMEs, multinational companies, industry associations and relevant stakeholders involved in supply chains of agricultural commodities.
• Non-governmental organizations and civil society.
• Academic and research institutions.
• Financial institutions.

Additional information – Trade, Development and the Environment Hub (TRADE Hub) Project

The Regional Stakeholders Consultations are part of UNEP Environment and Trade’s partnership in the Trade, Development and the Environment Hub (TRADE Hub), a global pioneering and multi-disciplinary project funded by the UK Research and Innovation, Global Challenges Research Fund.

The TRADE Hub has been established to respond to the challenges of unsustainable trade of agricultural commodities, wild species, and wild meat; aiming to address the longstanding tension between trade-induced economic growth, environmental and social impacts.

The Hub provides and develops underpinning research and knowledge, and collaborates with +50 organizations across government entities, businesses, farmers, supply chain actors and consumers, policymakers, and finance agencies to deliver solutions that tackle trade-associated environmental degradation, increased inequality, and social deprivation.