geoFootprint, the map to accelerate sustainable agriculture

geoFootprint is a combination of two online tools. geoFootprint Open is public-facing and free. It provides visual and quantified insight into the environmental footprint of crop production worldwide, displaying multiple layers of land characteristics (cultivated area, soil properties, yield, productivity) and metrics (carbon footprint, water footprint, eutrophication potential, biodiversity loss, etc.) per hectare and per ton of cultivated crop. It is fully transparent with regards to its data sources, assumptions and modelling principles, and gives unprecedented insight into underling drivers for each footprint metric. Typically, end users can visualise how much of a given footprint is related to deforestation, fertiliser use, irrigation or field practices. The dynamic map-based interface aims to democratise public access to footprinting information, raising awareness on key drivers and how these vary geographically. the geoFootprint licensed version is tailored for corporate and public decision-makers, with advanced simulation options to help identify and prioritise where action should prioritized. 2018: set up of the geoFootprint network and advisory board and consolidation of the spatial database 2019: development of the footprinting simulation engine and user interface, focusing on greenhouse gas emissions (incl. from deforestation) for 15 key crop commodities 2020: expansion to additional environmental metrics such as water scarcity, water quality, soil heath or biodiversity loss geoFootprint has attracted interest from multiple public stakeholders such as FAO, UNEP, SAI Platform, WBCSD, IUCN, World Resources Institute, the French Agency for the Environment and the Swiss Federal Office for Agriculture. It is being directly supported by major private corporations from food and agricultural sector such as Nestlé, Unilever, Mars, General Mills, Cargill, Olam, Yara and Syngenta. geoFootprint was launched in January 2021.