The developed guidelines present diverse opportunities to integrate blue foods into climate solutions and establish a comprehensive framework for setting targets and formulating policies.
Blue or aquatic foods sourced from rivers, lakes, and oceans are vital to global food systems. Despite their growing recognition as a priority for climate action, they are often overlooked in climate discussions and remain underfunded in adaptation and mitigation efforts. To address the climate impacts on these food systems and harness their potential for climate action, they must be integrated into national climate strategies and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) processes. Climate policymakers have a great chance to use the increasing interest and knowledge about blue foods to create clear plans that help the blue food industry grow strong and healthy within the context of climate change.
A recent study by Laura Anderson et al. presents guidelines designed to serve as a foundation for setting targets and formulating policies related to integrating blue foods into climate action. These guidelines are intended for individuals engaged in the development of nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and other climate-related policies. Rather than presenting a list of actions, they offer a framework for incorporating blue foods into climate solutions, providing diverse entry points. This framework is a foundation for establishing objectives and formulating policies that integrate blue foods into climate action strategies. Furthermore, policymakers are encouraged to adapt these policy alternatives to NDCs while considering their broader applicability across various domains of climate planning, including energy, nutrition, water and waste management, and economic development.
The policy options presented in the guidelines are structured into five key intervention areas including capture fisheries production, aquaculture production, blue food supply chains, consumption and diets, and blue foods and coastal blue carbon habitats. Additionally, four enabling measures are proposed to enhance the implementation and monitoring of climate solutions related to aquatic foods.
Capture fisheries production
- Policy option 1 – Develop sustainable and climate-adaptive fisheries management
- Policy option 2 – Reduce emissions from fishing
- Policy option 3 – Support climate-adaptive livelihoods and practices for fishers and fishing communities
Aquaculture production
- Policy option 1 – Improve aquaculture feed and feeding management to reduce greenhouse emissions
- Policy option 2 – Transition aquaculture energy inputs to renewables and reduce energy use
- Policy option 3 – Promote expansion of low-input, integrated, and/or non-fed aquaculture systems
- Policy option 4 – Support climate-adaptive technologies and practices to increase aquaculture’s resilience to climate change
Blue food supply chains
- Policy option 1 – Reduce loss and waste and enhance circularity in blue food supply chains
- Policy option 2 – Reduce emissions from energy use and operations such as storing, processing, and transporting blue foods.
Consumption and diets
- Policy option 1 – Integrate sustainable, low-carbon blue foods into food procurement, planning, and assistance programs
- Policy option 2 – Help consumers shift to sustainably produced, low-footprint blue foods
Blue foods and coastal blue carbon habitats
- Policy option 1 – Reduce the impact of aquaculture and fisheries on blue carbon habitats
- Policy option 2 – Implement blue carbon habitat management and restoration for carbon storage and adaptation
Coordinated policy measures across the intervention areas are essential to ensure that climate actions are integrated. Such measures can help reduce uncertainties, validate their effectiveness, and promote equity and inclusiveness.
Enabling policy measures to address cross-cutting challenges
- Enabling measure 1 – Research and development
- Enabling measure 2 – Develop and maintain robust data collection, monitoring, and prediction systems
- Enabling measure 3 – Improve equitable access to financial services, knowledge, government support, and resources
- Enabling measure 4 – Ensure collaborative and inclusive management, planning and decision-making
Reference: Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions, WorldFish, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics, CARE, and Environmental Defense Fund. 2024. Integrating blue foods into national climate strategies: Enhancing nationally determined contributions and strengthening climate action. Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions. https://doi.org/10.25740/ cq607gn4098
