Agrifood Climate and Environmental Sustainability (ACES) Initiative – Agrifood Sustainability and Innovation E-Dialogue Series

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Jacopo Monzini and Areej Jafari

[email protected]

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PROJECT SUMMARY

The EBRD-FAO Agrifood Sustainability and Innovation E-Dialogue Series, part of the ACES programme, promotes greener, resilient agrifood systems through innovation, investment and partnerships. It fosters dialogue on emerging technologies, sustainable value chains and financing models to scale climate-smart solutions. The series connects diverse stakeholders – investors, researchers, technology developers and policymakers – to advance innovations that reduce emissions, enhance resource efficiency and strengthen climate resilience of agrifood systems.

context

The Agrifood Sustainability and Innovation E-Dialogue Series is part of the broader EBRD-FAO collaboration programme, the Agri-food Climate and Environmental Sustainability Initiative (ACES). ACES supports the transition toward greener, more resilient agrifood systems across EBRD countries. In the context of rapid population growth and climate change, innovation is essential for transforming how food is produced, processed and distributed. ACES promotes climate-smart investment roadmaps, sustainable value chain development, and financing opportunities for public and private actors. By fostering enabling policies and partnerships, the initiative aims to scale up technologies and practices that reduce emissions, improve resource efficiency and strengthen climate resilience in agrifood systems.

The objective of the project is to explore a set of trending innovations and practices as well as players or companies that can accelerate the environmental sustainability transition of agrifood systems, from farm to fork. It will expose private sector companies, clients and bankers to front-runners in the business and scientific community using or exploring advanced solutions. 

The E-Dialogue Series seeks to stimulate high-level discussions on cutting-edge innovations in the agrifood sector to support sustainable intensification and productivity. Through structured focused conversations, these e-dialogues will create meaningful connections among diverse stakeholders involved in advancing, developing, scaling and ensuring the sustainability of innovations across the agrifood value chain, with specific relevance to EBRD countries and clients.

activities

E-dialogues bring together financiers, investors, innovators, policymakers, technology developers, researchers, scientific experts, institutional enablers and potential adopters, from diverse regions, to explore groundbreaking innovations driving the sustainability transition of agrifood systems.

 

Kicking off at the end of 2025, the series will include a launch session followed by more than 20 thematic e-dialogues. Each online event will explore a specific innovation or trend through expert presentation, an interactive moderated discussion with key panelists, and audience engagement. Through these dialogues, participants will engage with critical questions on specific innovations, drawing from both academic research and practical applications that have demonstrated scalability potential or successful implementation.

E-Dialogue Series topics

  • Opening session “From Vision to Impact”
  • Digital enablers
  • Robotics and automation in agriculture
  • Recyclable Packaging in Food Systems: plastics
  • Recyclable Packaging in Food Systems: cardboard, glass and laminated paper
  • Precision livestock management
  • Biofortification
  • Remote Sensing
  • Cold chain innovations
  • Host plant resistance for Pest Management Smart Devices
  • Disruptive innovations (Alternative Foods, cell-based food)
  • Technology and Innovation in NDCs
  • Fertilizer Innovation I – Slow-Release and Targeted Nutrient Systems
  • Fertilizer Innovation II – Novel Production Technologies
  • Fertilizer Innovation III – Smart Application Technologies
  • Biomass utilization
  • Animal feed innovations
  • Carbon Insetting I – Opportunities and Models
  • Carbon Insetting II – MRV Challenges and Innovations
  • Carbon Insetting III – Incentives and Risk Management
  • Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV)
  • Agrivoltaics
  • Food Loss and Waste (FLW): Digital Tools
  • Innovative preservation methods
  • Fertigation technologies (small-scale, indoor farming, precision challenges)

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PROJECTS

Agrifood Climate and Environmental Sustainability (ACES) Initiative – Agrifood Sustainability and Innovation E-Dialogue Series

Protecting and promoting the reputation of Türkiye’s Bursa black fig and peach

Developing NDC Roadmaps for Climate-Smart Agrifood Systems

Mongolia: Strengthening Climate Resilience in Dairy Farming

Greening Kyrgyzstan’s Economy: Know More, Act Better, Enhance Results

Facilitating agrifood investment in the energy-water-land nexus in Central Asia

Reforming Tunisia’s Grain Sector to Enhance Supply Chain Resilience

Adding A Splash of Value to Tunisian Olive Oil

Containing the Risks of African Swine Fever in South-eastern Europe

Defining the path towards climate-efficient agrifood system infrastructure

Filling Food Security Gaps in SEMED Supply Pipelines

A More Resilient Food Secure Future in the SEMED Region

Reducing Risks in SEMED Food Security Supply Chains

Improving Traditional Livelihoods with Modern Technology in Kazakhstan

Morocco Olive Oil Production Steps Up to the Plate

Carbon Neutrality: Utopia or The New Green Wave?

A Digital Transition to Safer Food Systems through e-phyto certificates

Putting Georgia’s Traditional Foods on the Culinary Roadmap

A Fresh Approach to Diversifying Agrifood Exports in the Western Balkans

Raising the Stakes for Quality Standards in Montenegro and Serbia

Diversifying Markets for Eastern European and Central Asian Horticulture

Building Back Shorter in Value Chains

Green Horticulture in a Digital Climate

A Taste for Quality Tea in Azerbaijan and Georgia

Linking youth innovation to value chain aggregators in the agrifood sector

The Resilience Pathway: Evolution of Food Distribution Systems during COVID-19

Putting Agricultural Resilience into Serbia’s Irrigation Pipelines

Reimagining the Future of Food for the Cities

Developing a Taste for West Bank and Gaza Olive Oil

Supporting Jordan’s Olive Oil Sector to be Resilient, Competitive and Profitable

Investing in Food Loss and Waste: What’s in it for Development Banks?

Strengthening Moroccan agrifood exporters’ sustainability and competitiveness on global high value markets

Jordan’s Traditional Foods Added to the Development Menu

Creating a Buzz for Türkiye’s Pine Honey

Serving up Egypt’s Fruits and Vegetables to the International Markets

A Public-private Recipe for More Efficient Wheat Imports in Egypt

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