DAVOS, SWITZERLAND — JBS Global chief executive officer Gilberto Tomazoni warned against initiatives that would increase food costs and lower the accessibility of affordable food during the First Movers Coalition for Food panel at the World Economic Forum on Jan. 18 in Davos, Switzerland. The panel also featured Ramón Laguarta, president and CEO of PepsiCo; Megan Scarsella, executive director of the Eleven Foundation and Axton Salim, director and member of the Indofood Council.

The panel discussed harnessing the purchasing power of large companies and governments worldwide to improve the sustainability of production and drive the development of low-carbon products.

During the discussion, Tomazoni emphasized the importance of regenerative agriculture in tackling two major global challenges; climate change and feeding the growing global population, which is expected to reach 10 billion people by 2050, according to the United Nations.

“Throughout the food chain, we must help our producer partners adopt new technologies and manage their operations more sustainably, according to the highest environmental standards,” Tomazoni said.

Tomazoni argued that the technology needed is already present, but it’s a matter of providing the initial finance required for farmers to adopt more sustainable practices.

“Especially for the small producer, access to initial capital is essential to transition to more sustainable practices such as planting cocoa in addition to rearing livestock, reducing the need to clear land and ensuring small producer productivity and income generation,” he said.

Food systems are responsible for 30% of greenhouse gas emissions but receive less than 4% of climate financing, highlighted Tomazoni.

The World Economic Forum estimates that $10 trillion is generated by the food sector, which globally accounts for 40% of all jobs. Food production accounts for over 70% of total global freshwater consumption.

JBS joined the First Movers Coalition for Food during COP28, held in Dubai at the end of 2023, with the leadership of the World Economic Forum and the support of the government of the United Arab Emirates and 19 other companies.