Illustration credit: Alvim Almeida Silva Junior

According to Professor Ricardo Abramovay, in an article published in the Jornal da USP — University of São Paulo, the way in which the mass production of grains has expanded so far has become unsustainable. The contemporary agri-food system currently accounts for around one third of global greenhouse gas emissions, is one of the main drivers of biodiversity erosion, and is associated with multiple forms of pollution and disease. At the root of this situation lies the triple monotony of agri-food systems — increasingly homogeneous agricultural landscapes, industrialized and genetically uniform animal production highly dependent on antibiotics, and diets marked by excessive meat consumption and the growing presence of ultra-processed foods.

Overcoming this triple monotony has therefore become a central challenge for food security, human health, environmental preservation, and the fight against climate change. On the horizon of overcoming it, diversity is a key factor on three major interconnected fronts: the introduction of biodiversity within agricultural and livestock practices, as a way to restore soil life and reduce dependence on pesticides and fertilizers; the transformation of animal production systems, with genetic diversification of herds and a drastic reduction in antibiotic use; and the diversification of diets, with a focus on fresh, plant-based foods, the valorization of local food and culinary cultures, and the progressive elimination of ultra-processed products.

We are faced with a complex and multidimensional challenge. The good news is that Brazil already has an advanced body of scientific research dedicated to creating the conditions to address and confront it. The experience grounded in a systemic approach — articulating production, environment, health, and consumption — which guides the scientific output of the Josué de Castro Chair for Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems at USP’s School of Public Health, inspired the creation of the INCT Overcoming the Triple Monotony of the Agri-Food System.

The initiative is part of the set of National Institutes of Science and Technology (INCTs), established by the Ministry of Science and Technology with the aim of supporting long-term research on strategic topics for the country’s development. Organized around a host institution of scientific excellence, the INCTs coordinate national networks of laboratories, research groups, and partner institutions, promoting multidisciplinary approaches, the training of highly qualified human resources, and cooperation across regions and fields of knowledge. Their purpose is to amplify scientific, technological, and innovation outcomes that could not be achieved in isolation, broadening the social impact of research.

It is within this framework that the INCT Overcoming the Triple Monotony of the Agri-Food System was established, approved under the 2024 call from the Ministry of Science and Technology and headquartered at IEA/USP — the Institute for Advanced Studies of the University of São Paulo. The INCT brings together seven research organizations: the Federal Institute of Santa Catarina, the Instituto Fome Zero, the Josué de Castro Chair, Nupens/USP — the Center for Epidemiological Research in Nutrition and Health at the University of São Paulo, IPAM — the Amazon Environmental Research Institute, and Embrapa/Acre — as well as partner organizations including Instituto Comida do Amanhã, Instituto Fólio, and Agropolis. Its central objective is to help the Brazilian agri-food system confront the triple planetary crisis (climatic, environmental, and sanitary) through the integrated analysis of trajectories of change in agricultural and livestock production, dietary diversification, and the transformation of food environments. The proposal adopts a methodological strategy that treats each research problem as part of a global agri-food system, articulating ecological, social, economic, and political dimensions. The coordination between research institutions and partner organizations gives the INCT a strategic position to establish itself as a national reference hub for the transition of the Brazilian agri-food system, with broad territorial reach.

The initiative starts from the recognition that food security in the 21st century depends less on increasing the supply of calories and proteins and more on strengthening ecosystem services, ensuring universal access to quality food, and reducing structural inequalities. Agricultural and productive monotony, in addition to destroying biodiversity, deepens inequalities: it concentrates credit and subsidies on a few products, such as soybeans, and excludes the majority of farmers, including family farmers. At the same time, intensive and genetically homogeneous animal production poses growing risks to public health, while current diets worsen nutritional imbalances. It is to address this set of challenges that this INCT aims to produce applied knowledge, guide public policies, and support agroecological and food transition processes.

The Instituto Ibirapitanga supported the formulation of the INCT Overcoming the Triple Monotony of the Agri-Food System, in the context of a donation to the Josué de Castro Chair, which enabled the design and submission of the proposal to the Ministry of Science and Technology’s call. With its approval, the INCT began to receive public funding for research, which does not fully cover strategic areas such as coordination, management, and scientific communication. Currently, Ibirapitanga’s support has the specific objective of contributing to the structuring of the INCT, the consolidation of its internal processes, and the strengthening of its public advocacy capacity; its strategic purpose is to encourage an integrated approach to the contemporary challenges of food systems, which offers relevant opportunities for scientific innovation and for the formulation of integrated One Health policies (human, animal, plant, and environmental).

The first concrete contribution of the INCT Overcoming the Triple Agri-Food Monotony is the book “Pathways for the Transition of the Agri-Food System: Challenges for Brazil”, published by Editora Senac and organized by Ricardo Abramovay and Arilson Favareto. The work brings together articles by researchers who analyze how current agricultural systems threaten environmental balance and human health, and presents innovations already underway to address these impacts. By pointing to trajectories capable of lifting these innovations out of their niche status and converting them into public policies and structural solutions, the book establishes itself as a theoretical and practical reference that more clearly positions and organizes the unavoidable, yet possible, paths to overcoming the triple monotony and clearing the way for the transition to just, healthy, and sustainable agri-food systems.