Today brought yet another big progress point for food loss and waste reduction coming from Baku, Azerbaijan, where more than 30 countries signed on to the COP29 “Declaration on Reducing Methane from Organic Waste” (starts on page 15). Representing 47% of global methane emissions from organic waste, these countries declared “their intent to work collaboratively and expeditiously to increase the pace and scale of action” toward eight objectives that together focus on prevention, separate collection, and improved management of organic waste. The signatories include seven of the 10 biggest emitters of methane from organic waste, including the United States.

In case you aren’t familiar, a COP declaration is a non-binding call-to-action outside the formal UNFCC negotiations that help to direct financial flows, identify priority areas for research and development, and galvanize action across all sectors of society. Because the decomposition of organic waste in landfills, open dumps, and wastewater “contribute almost 20 percent of anthropogenic methane emissions,” it is framed as a key step toward implementation of the 2021 Global Methane Pledge, which sets a global target of reducing methane emissions by at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030.

Rather than just a high-level goal, this declaration is quite sophisticated in how it approaches the topic. It acknowledges that “food waste and food loss is a significant global issue affecting countries worldwide, with substantial environmental, economic, and social impact.” It underscores the importance of prevention and also highlights that many of the solutions come with “important economic opportunities as well as opportunities to address the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.” Some of the economic opportunities it points to include creating local jobs, improving living standards, and reducing costs for cities while contributing to more sustainable urban development. Improved management of organic waste is also identified as a key solution to rebuilding soil for degraded land—which the declaration states is 25% of all global land area.

The eight objectives listed in the declaration include key actions on food loss and waste, including:

• “Promote organic waste management and tackle food loss and waste aiming to close cycles, rebuild soils, enhance urban and rural food systems and strengthen the bioeconomy”

• “Effectively integrate circular economy and waste measures in climate policies, including in the design of NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions) and implementation plans”

• “Respond to the need to substantially scale up financial flows towards initiatives and projects that address methane emissions from the waste sector including solutions that avoid organic waste”

• “Enhance capacity building and promote public awareness campaigns to educate and engage the public on the importance of sustainable waste management and methane reduction”

The declaration also highlights five key enabling areas for waste sector transformation, which include “1.5^oC-consistent waste sector components informing the design of future NDCs,” “National and sub-national policies and actions,” “Stepping up finance,” “Data for action and transparency,” and “Innovative partnerships.”

See the full list of signatories below.

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1. Republic of Azerbaijan

2. Republic of Korea

3. Japan

4. Russian Federation

5. Kingdom of Bhutan

6. Slovak Republic

7. State of Israel

8. Republic of Moldova

9. Federative Republic of Brazil

10. United Arab Emirates

11. Czech Republic (Czechia)

12. Federal Republic of Germany

13. Kingdom of Morocco

14. Republic of Belarus

15. Republic of Kazakhstan

16. United States of America

17. Republic of Türkiye

18. Republic of Chile

19. Canada

20. Kingdom of Norway

21. Kingdom of Belgium

22. State of Eritrea

23. Republic of Serbia

24. United Mexican States (Mexico)

25. State of Palestine

26. Republic of Austria

27. Republic of Malta

28. Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

29. Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

30. Republic of the Marshall Islands

31. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

32. Republic of The Gambia

33. Federal Republic of Nigeria

34. Republic of Guatemala

35. Malaysia