CLIMATE CHANGE – CHOCAPOCALYPSE

The Journal, Chartered Insurance Institute

July 5, 2024

https://thejournal.cii.co.uk/2024/07/04/climate-change-chocapocalypse

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7215936370018557953/

Here’s my piece of chocolate in the latest issue of the Journal, Chartered Insurance Institute!

While cocoa, the source of chocolate, originated in South America – today Ivory Coast and Ghana account for 50% of its annual yield. Africa currently puts together 75%. Tracked back to 450 BC, the sweet treat was once a preserve of the rich. Today it cuts across all geographies and age barriers.

However, climate change threatens to seriously disrupt cocoa supply. While some promising alternatives have already hit the market, there is still some hope in the form of ethical and sustainable practices. Crop insurers also have a positive role in the desired transition.

Needless to mention that cocoa is a part of a larger global malaise. According to Nature.org: “Approximately $500 billion in agricultural subsidies worldwide perpetuate unsustainable food and land use systems, which lead to environmental degradation, poor nutrition and income inequality. If we do nothing about the way we produce and consume our food, it will amount to damage estimated to cost $16 trillion each year by 2050.

By redirecting harmful subsidies toward sustainable practices, including regenerative agriculture, governments can accelerate international climate and biodiversity progress. This shift could provide 40 percent of the funding we need to protect and restore nature – without having to generate new funding streams. We need to see more of these shifts, and we need them urgently”.

#sustainability #regenerative #biodiversity