Many countries aim for sustainable food systems, which provide nutritious food equitably while advancing economic, social, and environmental objectives. However, most food systems generate substantial damaging environmental, social, and health impacts that are not reflected in the market prices of goods or services, including threats to biodiversity. At the same time, approaches that generate value for people and nature are largely unrecognized and unrewarded. True cost accounting (TCA) is a method that systematically measures and values positive and negative impacts to reveal the “true cost” of food production. As a result, TCA can provide decision makers with a roadmap to create healthy, sustainable food systems that help solve global challenges
During this session, researchers will present the findings of their TCA analyses and share their experience communicating/socializing the findings with local policymakers.
The presentations will be followed by a panel discussion, with the following talking points:
• How can TCA help us mainstream accounting for the negative impacts of food systems that are currently uncosted, and often, unaddressed?
• How can TCA enable policymakers to make better decisions for nature, balancing complex trade-offs?
• What lessons have been learned from CGIAR scientists on this project, and how can these lessons help others wishing to undertake TCA analyses for decision-making?
Permanent representative of the Netherlands to the United Nation in Rome and Chair, True Value of Food Initiative
Ambassador Marcel Beukeboom is the Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the UN organizations for food and agriculture in Rome. He is the Chair of the Group of Friends of Biodiversity, which aims to get biodiversity higher on the agenda of the Rome-based agencies and mainstream it throughout all their policies. He also chairs the True Value of Food Initiative, a coalition that was formed around the UN Food Systems Summit. He is in Cali on a mission to better connect the worlds of agrifood and biodiversity.
Global Director of Partnerships and Advocacy, CGIAR, and Director General of the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)
A Colombian and French national, Juan Lucas Restrepo has worked in the agricultural domain, both in the public and private sectors, for the past 25 years. He has supported the work of CGIAR through the various governance roles he held over the years in the Committee of Genetic Resources Policy, Oversight and Executive Committees, and as the representative of the Colombian Government on the CIAT Board of Directors as an ex-officio member. Among other positions, in Colombia, he served as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Vice President, Global Food Portfolio, Rockefeller Foundation
Sara leads the global portfolio for The Rockefeller Foundation’s food team and is driving the Foundation’s inaugural regenerative/agroecological food systems strategy and its Big Bet on food+climate in addition to ensuring school meals and public procurement become demand pulls for climate resilient, nutritious food. Sara has executed a $30M investment strategy toward the regenerative transition in the last two years, laying the groundwork for a 5-year commitment to regenerative beginning in 2025.
Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI
Rui Benfica is a Senior Research Fellow in the Innovation Policy and Scaling Unit. Rui holds a PhD in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University, with a focus on International Development, Commodity Market Analysis, and Quantitative Development Policy Research. He is a member of several professional organizations, has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals, and served as founder and co-editor of the IFAD Research Series.
Lead for Nature-Positive Solutions Initiative, Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT
Carlo Fadda is the Research Director for Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture focused on four major research areas: agrobiodiversity in production systems, conservation, characterization, and genomics of bananas, forest genetic diversity, and biodiversity-related policy. He also leads the CGIAR Nature-Positive Solutions Initiative. He holds a PhD in Evolutionary Biology from the University of Rome “La sapienza.”
Senior Agricultural Specialist, World Bank
Peter Goodman is a Senior Agriculture Economist in the Global Engagement Unit of the World Bank Global Department for Agriculture and Food. He is currently leading the preparation of the World Bank 2025 Biodiversity in Agriculture Flagship Report, in close collaboration with CGIAR. The report aims to improve our understanding of the critical importance of biodiversity for agriculture, climate resilience, food and water security and help countries achieve better biodiversity outcomes from agricultural investments and policies. He joined the World Bank in 2008 and has extensive field experience since 1991 in natural resource management investment projects funded by the World Bank and other international financial institutions in Eastern and Southern Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Asia and the Pacific and holds an M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics from Wye College, London University.
Executive Director, Global Alliance for the Future of Food
Named one of TIME’s “eco” Who’s-Who, Anna is the founder or co-founder of three national organizations, including Real Food Media, a communications strategy non-profit, and the Small Planet Fund, which supports democratic social movements worldwide. In 2016, she launched the Food Sovereignty Fund of the Panta Rhea Foundation. A recipient of the James Beard Leadership Award, Anna is the co-author or author of three books on food, farming, and sustainability and the contributing author to, or featured in, nineteen more. Anna’s work has been translated internationally and featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Gourmet, Oprah Magazine, among many other outlets.
Estefania is Project & Partnerships Manager at True Price. Before joining True Price, she worked for Impact Institute as an analyst focusing on true price assessments of food. Before that, Estefania was a research analyst with the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNI), an international NGO focused on benchmarking and private-sector accountability. She has a master’s in Public Policy and Administration specializing in Food from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
