McDonald’s USA pledged $5 million to aid AgMission in the development and implementation of climate-smart farming solutions over the next five years.
The quick service restaurant chain joins beverage company Pepsico as a Founding Partner of AgMission. The commitment to climate-smart agriculture aligns with McDonald’s goal of net zero emissions across its global operations by 2050.
“We’re striving to feed more people in increasingly sustainable ways by creating a food system in which communities, animals and the planet thrive,” Marion Gross, Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer, North America, at McDonald’s, said in a statement.
“It’s been proven time and again that real action comes through convening of partners around steady science-based strategies. We’re proud to contribute to the critically important work of AgMission and its partners to help measurably reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve supply chain resilience and enable regenerative agriculture.”
Regenerative agriculture is a set of farming and grazing practices that help to reverse climate change through the rebuilding of soil organic matter and the restorage of soil biodiversity.
Unlocking agriculture’s potential to reduce GHG emissions
AgMission is a global collaboration from Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR), the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers in Action (USFRA), and the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) designed to unlock agriculture’s potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The initiative brings together farmers, ranchers, scientists, data providers, stakeholders and funders to develop approaches to reduce emissions, advance climate-smart farming and deploy climate-smart solutions. The organization hopes to one day make the agriculture sector net-negative for GHG.
“Climate change threatens our environment, food security as well as farmer and ranchers’ livelihoods. We are elated that McDonald’s sees the value of AgMission’s approach and is partnering with us on this unprecedented initiative,” FFAR’s Executive Director Dr. Sally Rockey, stated in a press release.
“AgMission’s expansive, coordinated effort builds on existing research to coordinate agriculture’s climate-change response, connecting data from one part of the world that could benefit another.”
