A new report from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) analyzes successes and challenges encountered by five developing countries in their attempts to reduce deforestation and improve forest conservation. From these experiences, it distils seven common findings to help guide governments seeking similar goals in a fast-evolving regulatory context.

“Forests sustain and protect us in a myriad of ways, but they are disappearing—fast. The world has lost 420 million hectares of forest in the past 3 decades. That’s an area bigger than India,” says Cristina Larrea, IISD’s lead on sustainability standards. “But there is hope. We must not lose sight of the efforts many countries in the Global South have been undertaking to curb this trend for many decades, nor the value of sharing the lessons they have learned to inspire policy action based on best practices.”

The report outlines and compares various policy measures that Costa Rica, Gabon, Indonesia, Peru, and Rwanda have put in place to address deforestation and explores the role of voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) in complementing them.

It further finds that governments tend to have more success preserving and restoring forests if they use a combination of measures tailored to the local context and targeted at high-risk areas. They also stand to gain from supporting producers with maintaining compliance, mobilizing funds from both the public and private sectors, leveraging VSSs to support policies, and using physical and digital monitoring to measure results and flag issues early.

“Environmental issues are getting harder to ignore in the international trade arena,” says Florencia Sarmiento, Policy Analyst, IISD. “Governments must comply with an emerging suite of international regulations and frameworks, including several unilateral trade-related measures, such as due diligence requirements, aimed at tackling deforestation driven by the production and trade of commodities. Many have also started looking into cooperative approaches, such as including forest conservation provisions in free trade agreements.”

As policy-makers gather for the World Trade Organization’s Thirteenth Ministerial Conference next week, IISD is bringing together thought leaders at the Trade + Sustainability Hub to discuss how trade policy can deliver on critical sustainability challenges such as deforestation. IISD experts will share findings from the new report in a session on how we can achieve fair and inclusive value chains that are deforestation-free.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the State of Sustainability Initiatives

IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives advances sustainable and inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About IISD

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 200 experts come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Countries Seeking to Protect Forests Should Take Their Lead From Five Developing Countries appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

But the co-existence of—and competition among—multiple VSICMs has created a complex landscape. Join us for a webinar on March 21 as we present our latest research unpacking the different types of VSICMs and how they can help companies to advance their carbon management practices.

Details

• Date: Thursday March 21, 2024
• Time: 9:00 EDT / 13:00 GMT
• More details to be announced soon

The post Voluntary Standards and Initiatives for Carbon Management: Navigating the landscape appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

Two new reports from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) unpack and address these issues by mapping out the different types of voluntary measures that companies can use to reduce carbon emissions and outlining what more needs to be done for them to reach their potential.

“At a time when not all greenhouse gas emissions are strictly regulated across countries and sectors with the ambition required, VSICMs can provide companies with a useful roadmap for reducing their carbon emissions,” says Arturo Balderas, senior consultant on climate action. “They can also increase the transparency and credibility of their carbon management efforts and claims—helping regulators, businesses, and consumers start to distinguish real impact from greenwashing.”

But the co-existence of—and competition among—multiple standards and initiatives has created a complex landscape. IISD’s new reports help companies understand the different types of VSICMs and how they can help them advance their carbon management practices. They also outline some of the challenges that such initiatives face, alongside recommendations for addressing them.

“VSICMs need to foster substantial action and increase the number of businesses participating in their schemes to have any hope of limiting global warming to 1.5°C,” said Erika Luna, expert in sustainability standards at IISD. “A lack of data and standardization across different schemes and initiatives means that claims can sometimes be inaccurate or misleading, as well as difficult to compare.”

Validating and comparing results across schemes and initiatives is further complicated by the absence of a consistent, transparent, and traceable system to present and verify data obtained through VSICMs. This is particularly important when communicating a company’s progress in reducing its carbon emissions to the people buying or using its goods and services. IISD’s researchers are calling for a clear governance framework to promote alignment and coordination across initiatives and enhance the effectiveness and credibility of voluntary efforts in carbon management.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the State of Sustainability Initiatives

IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives advances sustainable and inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About IISD

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 200 experts come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Voluntary initiatives can lead the way to net-zero but must coordinate standards and get more businesses on board appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

New research from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) unearths the latest consumption and production trends in the sector and explores why so many tea farmers are struggling to make a living.

“Smallholder farmers bear the biggest brunt of low auction prices and volatility in the tea sector,” says Steffany Bermúdez, Policy Advisor, IISD. “They receive meagre prices for their green leaves—prices that represent a minimal share of the price tea fetches after it has been blended and packaged—and the added unpredictability of auction prices exposes them to even greater financial uncertainty.”

International tea trade is unique in that three quarters of the world’s tea is traded through public auctions. Overall, tea auction prices have been declining for the past 4 decades, with more severe drops in recent years due to pandemic-related disruptions and the Russia–Ukraine conflict.

On top of this, farmers also bear all the risks of extreme weather changes—to which the tea crop is very vulnerable—as well as variations in the cost and availability of crucial inputs like fertilizers. In some tea-producing countries, smallholder farmers make no profit at all, as their total production costs often exceed their earnings. There is little they can do to argue their case since farmers have no influence over tea auction prices and have limited market knowledge, so they must pay brokers a great deal to sell their tea.

IISD’s new report examines whether voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) such as Rainforest Alliance, Organic, and Fairtrade International make a difference to smallholder farmers’ livelihoods.

At least a quarter of tea is produced in compliance with one of these initiatives. Farmers in some major producing countries can receive up to 23% higher prices than conventional producers when selling VSS-compliant tea. However, further evidence of VSSs’ impact on farmers’ incomes is limited. Results are context and location specific, and it is not clear if the prices they fetch even make up for the costs of certification. They certainly don’t if VSS-compliant tea is sold as conventional, which estimates suggest happens 90% of the time.

“Global demand for VSS-compliant tea climbed after the pandemic and is expected to keep on growing— with room to grow even faster,” says Vivek Voora, Senior Associate, IISD. “Challenges need to be overcome, particularly in producing countries, to make VSS-compliant tea more readily available—and more affordable.”

IISD experts also argue that there is an urgent need to develop new approaches to recognizing the social and environmental costs of conventional tea production so that farmers can be adequately rewarded for using more sustainable practices.

This is particularly challenging given that tea auctions are heavily influenced by multinational companies downstream in the value chain that hold all the power and most of the profit in the sector yet are rarely concerned with the social and environmental impacts of conventional tea production. As a minimum, they should be paying prices that cover farmers’ production costs and basic household needs.

The report provides recommendations for how governments, private sector actors, and standard-setting bodies can better support smallholder farmers and make tea production fairer and more sustainable. These recommendations range from modernizing tea auctions to place greater value on VSS-compliant tea to encouraging all standard-setting bodies to establish minimum prices and premiums—as well as strengthening those that already do.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the Sustainable Commodities Marketplace Series

This report is part of the Sustainable Commodities Marketplace Series of global market reports that analyze agricultural commodities to foster transparency, knowledge, and strategic decision making for sustainable development. The series covers bananas, cotton, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, soybeans, sugar, and tea. The series is published by IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives (SSI), which aims to advance inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About the International Institute for Sustainable Development

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 120 people, plus over 150 associates and consultants, come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Urgent Action Is Needed to Better Reward Tea Farmers for Using Sustainable Practices appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

Voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) have emerged and proliferated over the last 3 decades to help address social and environmental challenges associated with how we produce and consume food and goods. Many VSS-setting organizations (VSSSOs) in the agricultural sector seek to improve the livelihoods of producers—by which we mean farmers, farm workers, and factory workers—as part of their mandate.

But to what degree do VSSSOs include the people they intend to help in the decisions that affect their lives? Studies suggest not nearly enough.

New research from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) analyzes the extent to which producers are included in the governance systems of six VSSSOs in the agricultural sector. While progress is promising, IISD’s experts conclude that much more needs to be done to enable producers to have their say in decisions that impact their lives.

“Producers are at the heart of the work that VSSSOs do. Giving them the opportunity to help steer the agenda is key to ensuring VSSs stay relevant to the context, priorities, and needs of those they are trying to reach,” says Sara Elder, Senior Policy Advisor at IISD.

IISD’s new report outlines a series of recommendations for how VSSSOs can enhance their democratic processes and include a greater quantity and breadth of producers in their governance systems. These recommendations include giving producers votes and veto power in governance bodies, training to be informed about what’s at stake, opportunities for open communication, a seat and vote on grievance committees, and access to and influence over data collection.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the State of Sustainability Initiatives

IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives advances sustainable and inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About the International Institute for Sustainable Development

IISD is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 120 people, plus over 150 associates and consultants, come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Sustainability Standards Must Give Producers More Opportunities to Help Steer Their Agenda appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

Agricultural commodity markets are often volatile. Over the past 2 decades, they have experienced a higher degree of volatility than ever before. Their precarious nature has also been exacerbated in recent years by extreme weather events, the COVID-19 pandemic, and global geopolitical dynamics that have limited the availability and affordability of key inputs for agricultural production.

Disruptions in international commodity prices threaten livelihoods in producing and exporting countries in developing regions. Price volatility risks and market power are disproportionately distributed downstream in value chains, which means that smallholder farmers shoulder an unfair share of the risks of producing the food and goods we consume. Additionally, many farmers keep receiving low prices at the gate, and their production costs have increased, compromising their already meagre standard of living and holding them back from making much-needed investments in their farms. 

Our research shows that agricultural producers associated with voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) can be better protected from market price volatility and may receive higher prices than those selling conventional products, as well as higher crop incomes. However, VSSs’ ability to improve farmers’ prices and incomes is limited by factors such as a lack of demand for VSS-compliant products, asymmetrical power relations in value chains, and a reliance on international market prices for conventional products when determining prices and premiums for VSS-compliant products.

This webinar explored the findings from IISD’s latest research on pricing in eight sustainable agricultural commodity markets. It provided a series of recommendations for how VSSs can better support farmers in receiving higher prices and incomes and suggested other potential ways to adequately reward farmers for investing in more sustainable agricultural practices.

Speakers

• Charlotte Eba, Lecturer in Economics and Member of the Centre for African Research on Enterprise and Economic Development, University of the West of Scotland
• Julie Francoeur, CEO, Fairtrade Canada
• Andrea Rusman, Food Transition Lead, Impact Institute
• Emily Stone, Founder and CEO, Uncommon Cacao

Commentator

• Rupal Verma, Secretariat Advisor for the United Nations Forum on Sustainability Standards

Moderators

• Steffany Bermúdez, Policy Advisor, IISD
• Cristina Larrea, Lead, Sustainability Standards, IISD

Explore the Global Commodities Marketplace Series

The post Sustainability Standards and Commodity Prices: How to better support farmers’ livelihoods appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

IISD delivered a training workshop to address some of the challenges faced by agricultural cooperatives in Cambodia. The workshop brought together 40 participants—including representatives from the government, agricultural cooperatives, farmers organizations, and farmers engaged in agricultural cooperatives and contract farming activities. It focused on the roles that voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) and responsible contract farming can play in supporting collective production schemes and ensuring cooperatives are robust.

VSSs are private or public initiatives that set requirements for producing, consuming, and trading products more sustainably. Farmers and agricultural cooperatives that comply with VSSs engage in more sustainable production practices, which can lead to a range of benefits, such as increased yields, improved soil fertility, and, in turn, new market opportunities and better prices and premiums. The workshop explored how VSSs can help cooperatives form and operate successfully, and conversely how cooperatives can help remove some of the barriers farmers face in accessing the benefits of VSSs.

Contract farming can be an inclusive agricultural business model that helps farmers access better inputs, markets, training, and prices. It can help increase agricultural productivity, improve rural livelihoods, and support food security. However, for contract farming to achieve equitable social, economic, and sustainable benefits, power asymmetries between small-scale producers and buyers must be addressed. Outcomes for women in contract farming can also be especially poor. The workshop explored how template agreements, such as IISD and FAO’s Model Agreement for Responsible Contract Farming and the UNIDROIT/FAO/IFAD Legal Guide on Contract Farming, can help make fair and transparent contract farming a reality.

The post Training Workshop on Promoting Agricultural Cooperatives in Cambodia: The role of voluntary sustainability standards and responsible contract farming appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

IISD recently published a report exploring the extent to which producers are included in the governance systems of six VSS-setting organizations (VSSSOs) in the agricultural sector. We gathered representatives from these VSSSOs on November 6 to share and discuss the findings from the report, including a series of recommendations for how VSSSOs can give producers more power and voice in decision-making processes.

These recommendations include giving producers votes and veto power in governance bodies, training to be informed on what’s at stake, opportunities for open communication, a seat and vote on grievance committees, and access to and influence over data collection.

The post Dialogue on Producer Inclusion in Voluntary Sustainability Standard Governance appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

A new report from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) explores how governments in developing countries are using voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) in their trade policies to ensure this growth benefits small-scale producers, communities, and the environment.

VSSs are private or public initiatives that set requirements for producing, consuming, and trading products more sustainably. However, small-scale producers in developing countries can face challenges participating in them, such as high certification costs and a lack of support, incentive, or information on how to adopt their practices.

“Governments in developing countries are increasingly recognizing the benefits of working with VSSs to promote trade that supports more sustainable production practices while also addressing some of the concerns associated with their adoption,” said Steffany Bermúdez, Policy Advisor, IISD.

The report outlines five examples of developing country governments and regional blocs in the Global South that are integrating VSSs in trade policy and explores how successful they have been. From a Memorandum of Understanding seeking to boost the trade of organic certified products between Chile and Brazil to the development of a recognition system for VSSs across the African continent, they illustrate the role that governments can play in enhancing VSSs’ potential to deliver positive sustainability outcomes and generate trade opportunities for small-scale farmers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs.)

“We found that integrating VSSs in South–South trade policies can help reduce some barriers to trade for small-scale producers and SMEs,” said Florencia Sarmiento, Policy Analyst, IISD. “It can also encourage trust and recognition in VSSs, lower the costs of compliance, increase demand for VSS-compliant products, and promote harmonization between different standards.”

While the impacts of the examples showcased are context dependent, they suggest that national or bilateral initiatives tend to have more success, likely because regional initiatives take longer to develop and require consensus among a greater number of partners with competing interests. However, including VSSs in regional processes has greater potential to increase trade within—and potentially between—regions in the Global South.

The report concludes with recommendations on how to unlock VSSs’ potential to increase and promote more sustainable practices and enhance market access for smallholders and SMEs through trade policy. Experts will be presenting and discussing the findings of the report during a public webinar on September 27.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the State of Sustainability Initiatives

IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives advances sustainable and inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About the International Institute for Sustainable Development

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 120 people, plus over 150 associates and consultants, come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Integrating Sustainability Standards in South–South Trade Policies Can Improve Producers’ Livelihoods in Developing Countries, New Report Shows appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.

A new report from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) explores recent market trends in the sugar cane sector, what these trends mean for producers in developing countries, and what voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs), governments, and private sector actors can do to improve farmers’ incomes.

It finds that the prices that farmers get for their sugar cane vary greatly from country to country, given it is one of the world’s most heavily regulated industries. Almost all producing and exporting countries have implemented minimum price mechanisms for domestic and exported cane sugar and use measures such as subsidies or import duties to protect the competitiveness of their local industries and insulate their domestic markets from global price fluctuations.

“Smallholder farmers and mills in developing countries that do not have the capacity to put domestic pricing regulations in place are more vulnerable,” said Steffany Bermúdez, Policy Advisor, IISD. “They are not protected from fluctuations in international cane sugar prices and can’t compete with farmers in countries that have strong government support. On top of that, many also lack adequate agricultural inputs, negotiating power, and access to much-needed financial support.”

Sugar cane farmers also have to contend with a wide range of sustainability challenges, including crop losses caused by climate change, pests and diseases, biodiversity loss, and water depletion. In recent years, they have had to cope with additional challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing global economic uncertainty, such as drops in demand and soaring fertilizer and labour costs.

VSSs such as Bonsucro, ProTerra Foundation, and Fairtrade International have been working for over a decade in the sector. They seek to overcome some of these challenges by setting sustainability requirements for sugar cane farmers and mills to meet in exchange for certifying their produce as VSS-compliant and gaining market recognition.

“VSS-compliant sugar cane represented almost 8% of total global production in 2019, growing at a compound annual growth rate of about 46% since 2008,” said Vivek Voora, Senior Associate, IISD. “More than 37,000 farmers produced at least 136 million tonnes of VSS-compliant sugar cane in 2019. If trends continue, it’s possible that figure could double by 2025.”

While demand for cane sugar is falling overall, largely due to public health policies aimed at promoting healthier diets, demand for VSS-compliant sugar cane in the sustainable production of biofuels is growing. This is largely due to European regulations that recognize VSS-compliant sugar cane as an acceptable feedstock for producing sustainable biofuels.

However, evidence of the effects of VSSs on farmers’ prices and incomes is limited. IISD’s analysis suggests that in 2019, sugar cane producers in Brazil, India, and Thailand who complied with Fairtrade International may have received prices up to 13% higher when receiving premiums—rising to 20% higher if they also complied with Organic. However, certified producers selling their produce through Bonsucro’s credit platform did not receive significantly higher prices than non-certified producers.

Additionally, despite increasing demand for VSS-compliant cane sugar, it remains lower than supply, so many sugar cane farmers face difficulties accessing markets for certified produce. For example, in 2018, only a quarter of Bonsucro-certified cane sugar was sold as compliant with the scheme, rising to nearly a third in 2020. If farmers don’t sell their produce as VSS compliant, they don’t receive higher prices or premiums for it, and they may not be able to maintain certification.

The report concludes by providing recommendations for how governments, private sector actors, and standard-setting bodies can work together to make sugar cane production fairer and more sustainable.

Contact

For more information or to set up an interview, contact media@iisd.org.

About the Sustainable Commodities Marketplace Series

This report is part of the Sustainable Commodities Marketplace Series of global market reports that analyze agricultural commodities to foster transparency, knowledge, and strategic decision making for sustainable development. The series covers bananas, cotton, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, soybeans, sugar, and tea. The series is published by IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives (SSI), which aims to advance inclusive value chains by providing credible and solutions-oriented research, dialogue, and strategic advice for decision-makers about voluntary sustainability standards and other supportive initiatives.

About the International Institute for Sustainable Development

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an award-winning independent think tank working to accelerate solutions for a stable climate, sustainable resource management, and fair economies. Our work inspires better decisions and sparks meaningful action to help people and the planet thrive. We shine a light on what can be achieved when governments, businesses, non-profits, and communities come together. IISD’s staff of more than 120 people, plus over 150 associates and consultants, come from across the globe and from many disciplines. With offices in Winnipeg, Geneva, Ottawa, and Toronto, our work affects lives in nearly 100 countries.

The post Sustainability Initiatives Falling Short for Sugar Cane Farmers in Developing Countries appeared first on State of Sustainability Initiatives.