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Climate volatility isn’t a distant threat—it’s here, and it’s already reshaping our food system.
More than 70% of companies surveyed in Regrow’s 2025 State of Ag Resilience Report reported experiencing the impacts of climate-related supply chain disruptions. Nearly all anticipate more to come. These disruptions—driven by extreme weather events and shifting climate patterns—are leading to higher commodity prices and greater operational risk.
In 2023 alone, climate change cost the global economy an estimated $143 billion. That’s $16 million every hour. And in some recent events, like Hurricanes Helene and Milton, nearly half of the economic damage was linked directly to human-caused climate change.
These figures are more than just numbers. They’re a wake-up call.
Climate action starts with clear goals
Despite growing risk, corporate responses remain uneven. Scope 3 emissions—those that occur across a company’s value chain—account for as much as 90% of total emissions in agricultural supply chains, yet many companies still lack clear goals to address them.
Our research shows that setting specific, measurable goals is more than a reporting exercise—it’s a catalyst for change.
Companies with defined climate goals, like Kellanova and Oatly, are using them to align departments, prioritize funding, and unlock cross-functional collaboration. Oatly, for example, has aligned both its sustainability and sourcing teams around its regenerative agriculture targets. As a result, the company now sources from regenerative farmers for its entire North American business. These public commitments send a powerful signal internally—and across the industry.
Aligning on a north star
Survey respondents identified “clear alignment with corporate sustainability goals” as the most effective way to secure organizational investment in regenerative agriculture. In other words: if you want to build a strong, long-term regenerative ag program, your first step is to make sure the outcomes from your program will drive progress against company targets.
With well-defined goals in place, companies can:
- Prioritize the right investments
- Align sourcing, procurement and sustainability teams
- Attract partners and unlock co-investment opportunities
- Inspire broader action across their value chains
Data is the foundation for action
Of course, setting goals is only the beginning. To track progress and prove impact, companies need reliable ways to measure emissions and outcomes.
Historically, scope 3 emissions were notoriously hard to quantify with accuracy. But with advancements in remote sensing, AI, and carbon modeling, that’s changing. Today, companies can baseline emissions and monitor change across millions of acres with greater precision and lower cost.
This data supports goal-setting and enables transparency and shared accountability between buyers, suppliers, and partners.
Moving from risk management to ROI
Emissions data is essential, but it’s not the only metric that matters. To accelerate resilience-building across the sector, we also need to understand the return on investment (ROI) of sustainability initiatives.
More on that in our next blog.
