Carbon markets and food systems

Pingault N and Martius C. 2026. Carbon markets and food systems. Occasional Paper 23. Bogor, Indonesia: CIFOR; Nairobi, Kenya: ICRAF. https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor-icraf/009429

Carbon markets are increasingly recognized as a central instrument of international climate cooperation, yet their potential to support the decarbonization of food systems remains largely untapped. Food systems—spanning agriculture, land use and land-use change and forestry, energy, industry, and waste—account for around one third of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, while offering substantial mitigation opportunities across production, value chains, and consumption. This paper provides one of the first comprehensive assessments of how food-system-related mitigation activities are represented in international carbon markets. Drawing on an original merged database covering more than 9,200 projects from both UNFCCC mechanisms (notably the Clean Development Mechanism) and major independent standards, it analyses nearly 4.9 GtCO₂e of issued carbon credits through a food- system lens. The study introduces a simplified typology of project scopes and types and examines the geographical, sectoral, and technological distribution of food-system-related projects. It shows that while food systems account for a significant share of credits—especially in independent mechanisms— carbon market activity remains highly concentrated geographically and skewed toward a limited number of project types, notably large-scale REDD+ and refrigeration projects. By contrast, major sources of food-system emissions at the farm gate and along food value chains—such as livestock methane, rice cultivation, food loss and waste, and household energy use—remain largely overlooked. The paper discusses the implications of these gaps for the environmental integrity and effectiveness of carbon markets and highlights the need for adapted methodologies, improved integration of small-scale projects, and greater alignment between compliance and voluntary markets. It concludes by outlining how carbon markets could more effectively contribute to food-system decarbonization while supporting sustainable development and food security.