SHARM EL-SHEIKH, EGYPT — Fourteen of the world’s leading agribusiness companies earlier this week at COP27 United Nations Climate Change Conference set out a shared roadmap outlining how they will work toward reducing emissions from land-use change.

Following the commitments made at last year’s COP26, the Tropical Forest Alliance, hosted by the World Economic Forum, with support from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, has facilitated the process for the agricultural commodity companies to develop the Agriculture Sector Roadmap to 1.5°C.

The roadmap sets out plans for the cattle, soybean and palm oil sectors to ensure that production of these commodities, which has been a leading driver of forest loss, takes place in a more sustainable manner. The roadmap also outlines how signatories will engage and collaborate with other stakeholders, namely governments, supply chain actors and financial institutions, for wider support of the roadmap’s commitments.

Companies taking part in the Agriculture Sector Roadmap to 1.5°C include ADM, Bunge, Cargill, and Louis Dreyfus, the so-called ABCDs of agribusiness, along with other major players.

ADM issued a statement regarding its involvement to the initiative.

“ADM takes its commitments to halting climate change seriously, and its implementation of the 1.5-degree roadmap is an integral part of a broader climate strategy that includes aggressive targets to reduce Scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions,” said Alison Taylor, chief sustainability officer at ADM. “We are proud to collaborate with our peers to take this next step to reduce forest loss from supply chains.”

Michael Gelchie, chief executive officer, Louis Dreyfus Co., added that the Netherlands-based company is committed to a collaborative approach that seeks shared solutions to common challenges.

“In this sense, we are working hand-in-hand with customers, suppliers, financial community partners, peers and other value chain stakeholders toward traceable, low-carbon and deforestation-free supply chains, leveraging technologies with the potential to accelerate positive change, engaging in our own global operations and across supply chains, and putting farmers at the center of our efforts as the heart of the food chain.”

Beginning at next year’s 2023 COP28, the companies will report annually and publicly on progress against final and interim targets.