The predominant practices of conventional food production are major drivers for climate change, rural decline and ecological degradation. A recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) asserts that industrial food and farming are responsible for an estimated 30% of total greenhouse gas emissions per year linked to deforestation and land use degradation and unsustainable ways in which food is stored, transported, processed, and retailed.[1] There is an urgency to re-think key supply chains of food production, processing and distribution. 

Regenerative approaches to farming have gained momentum as to the most viable pathway to restore landscapes and transform food production. Regenerative agriculture systems are inherently nature-based - imitating the processes and functions of natural ecosystems. Through such approaches, greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity loss can be reduced, and a significant amount of carbon is stored in the vegetation and soils.[2][3] Regenerative agriculture does not only improve the environment. Multiple studies show that regenerative agriculture can be up to 78% more profitable than conventional farming models. [4][5]

Although many benefits of regenerative agriculture are proven, accelerating and scaling the regenerative agriculture transition requires an innovative approach that combines both financial and technical expertise.

OUR UNIQUE APPROACH AMALGAMATES THIS EXPERTISe.

As an investment advisor, 12Tree builds the required bridge between scaled capital and impactful nature-based investments to support value chain transformation. Thinking at landscape level, which recognizes intersections between people and nature along all steps of supply chains, we help the collaboration between key stakeholders along value chains, including financial investors, small-scale farmers, producers, manufacturers and retailers. With this integrated approach we seek to deliver real and tangible benefits to people, nature and climate.

[1] P. R. Shukla et al. 2019. “Summary for Policymakers,” in Climate Change and Land: An IPCC Special Report on Climate Change, Desertification, Land Degradation, Sustainable Land Management, Food Security, and Greenhouse Gas Fluxes in Terrestrial Ecosystems. Available at: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/sites/4/2020/02/SPM_Updated-Jan20.pdf.

[2] High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE). 2019. Agroecological and Other Innovative Approaches for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems That Enhance Food Security and Nutrition (Rome: HLPE on Food Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security).

[3] F. Leippert, M. Darmaun, M. Bernoux, and M. Mpheshea. 2020. The Potential of Agroecology to Build Climate Resilient Livelihoods and Food Systems (Rome: FAO, and Zurich, Switzerland: Biovision).

[4] LaCanne C.E., Lundgren J.G. Regenerative agriculture. 2018. Merging farming and natural resource conservation profitably. PeerJ.

[5] Bain & Company. 2021. Helping Farmers Shift to Regenerative Agriculture. Available at : https://www.bain.com/insights/helping-farmers-shift-to-regenerative-agriculture/