IEHN Working Group for Pesticide Reduction and Biodiversity
Addressing the Materiality of Pesticide Impacts & Biodiversity Loss
As shareholders and fiduciaries, we recognize the material risks posed by the impacts of pesticides on human health, and children’s health in particular, biodiversity loss, and the health of the environment. The economic benefits of pesticide use reduction are well established. Annual economic gain from regenerative agriculture systems that include input reduction is estimated to be $1.17 trillion by 2030 [1] and $3.04 trillion by 2050, with a reduction of public health costs of $850 billion a year by 2030. Consumer demand for organic products has exhibited double-digit growth most years since the 1990s, and now accounts for approximately 5.5% of total U.S. food sales [2].
The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2024 identified biodiversity loss and natural resource crises amongst the top 10 “most severe risks on a global scale over the next 10 years [3].” Approximately 40% of all invertebrate pollinating species are on the brink of extinction, due, in large part, to the pesticides used in agricultural production [4]. The continued loss of pollinators poses significant financial risks for the entire food industry as an estimated $235 billion to $577 billion worth of global annual food production relies on contributions by pollinators.
Click here for the materiality of pesticide impacts and biodiversity loss.
IEHN Working Group for Pesticide Reduction and Biodiversity is co-led with Mercy Investment Services. Working with leading experts, investors in the working group have developed key performance metrics and engagement expectations to track and assess portfolio vulnerabilities associated with the use of highly hazardous pesticides and biodiversity loss. Our engagement focus is on retailers (food, home improvement), food manufacturers, and agrochemical producers. Industry guidance for best practice aligned with investor expectations can be found in the following initiatives:
- IMP Institute
- As you Sow’s Pesticides in the Pantry report: Transparency & Risk in Food Supply Chains
- Share Action’s Assessment of six largest pesticide companies’ approaches to addressing biodiversity loss
- ChemScore
For more information, please reach out to Alexandra: alexandra [at] cleanproduction.org or Caroline: cboden [at] mercyinvestments.org
[2] https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/natural-resources-environment/organic-agriculture/
[3] https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-risks-report-2024/digest/