Sustainable Food Practices Could Halve Food-System Emissions, Cornell-Led Study Finds
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KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6, 2025 — About 30 % of global greenhouse gas emissions come from food systems. But a comprehensive new report led by Cornell researchers suggests that through a combination of sustainable practices, those emissions could be cut by more than half by 2050.
The report, part of the EAT-Lancet Commission’s “Report on Healthy, Sustainable and Just Food Systems,” leverages modeling across more than 35 countries to map potential future scenarios. The Cornell team ran simulations assessing how changes in diets, food loss, agriculture methods, and land use might affect environmental, health, and social outcomes.
Among its findings:
- While dietary shifts are vital, they alone are not enough. Sweeping reforms like cutting food loss and waste, adopting sustainable agriculture practices, and preserving natural ecosystems are essential to reach the emissions reductions goal.
- More than half of the world’s population lacks access to healthy diets, and over 1 billion people remain undernourished. The report also points out that the top 30 % of consumers are responsible for over 70 % of food-related environmental impacts.
- The report identifies eight key levers for reform, ranging from improving agricultural productivity to halting further conversion of intact ecosystems into farmland.
The authors emphasize that transforming food systems is not only an environmental necessity but also a public health and equity imperative. By integrating healthier, more sustainable diets with systemic changes in production and waste, it is possible to face the dual challenges of climate change and food insecurity.
For Malaysia and other ASEAN nations, these findings underscore both risks and opportunities: aligning national food policies, investing in sustainable agriculture, and encouraging dietary patterns that protect both human and planetary health.
