Agroecology highlights policy gaps and funding misalignments in climate action.

Researchers report that the AFOLU sector accounts for over 20% of global emissions and that EU agricultural funding since 2021 has directed substantially more to direct payments than to rural development, leaving higher-impact measures relatively underfunded.

Concerns are growing that climate mitigation in agriculture and forestry is not receiving coherent or sufficiently evidence‑based policy attention. The agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector is reported as responsible for more than 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions and is described by some observers as a missing piece in EU climate policy. International and EU debates show fragmented priorities, with many initiatives prioritising traditional agricultural goals over environmental outcomes. Funding allocations and weak assessment of real‑world effectiveness are cited as key reasons for the misalignment. Key facts: - AFOLU is reported as accounting for over 20% of global emissions and is identified as a continuing gap in climate policy coordination. - Reviews and academic research note a scarcity of ex‑post assessments of AFOLU initiatives and warn of incoherent policy agendas across instruments. - The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has provided €378.5 billion since January 2021, with about €283.9 billion to direct payments and market measures and €94.2 billion to rural development, which funds environmental actions. - Non‑market instruments such as Protected Areas, Forest Management Programs and Payments for Environmental Services are reported as delivering relatively strong emission reductions in some cases, while the EU Deforestation Regulation is facing political pushback and delays in enforcement. Summary: The reported mismatch between large-scale agricultural funding and the measures shown to yield stronger emission reductions creates a risk to Europe's climate and biodiversity objectives. Some policy developments and deadlines are known, including national plans such as Denmark's announced agricultural carbon tax target for 2030 and recent postponements and political debate around the EU Deforestation Regulation. Undetermined at this time.