Sistema agroalimentario: emisiones, acción climática, sector privado y financiamiento

The agri-food system of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) face a critical crossroads: while the agriculture, forestry, and other land use (ASOUT) sector accounts for 58% of regional emissions, it is also positioned as the fundamental driver for a transition to a sustainable bioeconomy. Methodologically, this article proposes the Comparative Mapping Table (CMT) as a strategic and operational tool to overcome the existing accounting fragmentation between the sectoral categories of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the functional view of agri-food system value chains. This approach makes it possible to visualize emission hotspots in the pre- and post-production stages, facilitating the design of climate-responsive projects. Furthermore, it examines the Triple Gap that limits climate action in these systems, characterized by insufficient financing, unambitious planning, and a persistent lack of robust data. In the lead-up to the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, the urgency of the new Nationally Determined Contributions 3.0 (NDC 3.0) is emphasized, requiring them to clearly and precisely identify feasible and bankable projects. This entails having clear and detailed investment plans that mobilize public and private capital. Multi-level collaboration, including subnational action and public-private partnerships, is essential for the region not only to meet its goals but also to demonstrate that food and climate can coexist harmoniously, overcoming the paradox of low prosperity and high deforestation affecting critical biomes such as the Amazon. Finally, the challenges facing strategic biomes like the Amazon and the Andes are highlighted, concluding that data integration, multi-level planning, and blended finance are indispensable pillars for translating international agreements into bankable investment portfolios that guarantee food security and the global climate resilience of agri-food systems.