Are corporations taking a backseat in their global development goals? The short answer is yes. Witness the following examples: the demise of the Net Zero Banking Alliance, the restructuring of several similar initiatives, corporate backtracking on environmental, social and diversity (ESG) commitments, the postponement of the EU Deforestation Regulation and the scaling back of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
With dwindling official development assistance budgets and a retreat from multilateralism we are far removed from the heydays of 2015 when the global community coalesced around a common vision for the future as defined by the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement.
Yet the spirit that inspired leaders in 2015 and imbued the launch of the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge in 2021 has not fully disappeared. This is the key conclusion that we have drawn following a review undertaken this year to verify whether companies in the Zero Hunger Pledge had indeed converted their commitments into action on the ground.
The Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge calls on the business community to invest in projects that end hunger and malnutrition based on the recommendations from the Ceres2030 project that identified 90 priority countries and 10 high-impact investment areas. To ensure the credibility of the Zero Hunger Pledge, every two years, independent consultants verify how much, where and in what areas companies have deployed their pledges.
This year’s findings surpassed our expectations. Between 20023 and 2024, 16 companies invested US$214 million through 138 projects in 40 countries. Cumulatively, the Pledge has now deployed US$440 million since its launch. Even more impressive, four companies—AGREA, Nutriset, Rabobank, and Soilless Farm Lab—exceeded their original commitment by a combined US$151 million. This means that, all together, the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge has mobilized nearly US$800 million in commitments, from its previous tally of US$645 million, from over 100 businesses worldwide to end hunger and malnutrition.
Through this verification process, we have gained three key insights about company priorities.
First, companies are investing in the resilience of smallholder farmers on their farms and across their value chains. These investments, representing 92 percent of total investments, included programs to improve yields, advance regenerative agriculture, and reduce post-harvest losses. For example, in Uganda, East-West Seed supported 14,000 smallholder farmers with the training and technology to grow pumpkins and created a market that has attracted buyers from as far as Kenya. In the Philippines, Morination trained farmers to grow moringa trees and use the leaves to produce highly nutritious food powder.
Second, companies are investing in their local communities. The number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with headquarters in Africa and Asia that are making commitments is growing. In 2025, 36 companies from Africa and Asia committed more than US$3 million for programs in their communities. In Bangladesh, 11 new companies joined the Pledge after recognising the critical link between workforce nutrition and business sustainability. Local engagement is key to ending hunger and malnutrition. Companies are now acting upon this fact.
Finally, more effort is needed in Africa which hosts 13 of the 15 high-priority countries identified by the Ceres2030 project. Only 3 percent of the projects were deployed in high-priority countries, with only five high-priority countries receiving investment. Not only is this less than in the previous reporting cycle, but also a worrying trend if we are not investing in the most vulnerable countries.
While the investments made through the Zero Hunger Pledge are laudable, far more progress is needed. According to a recent report, an additional US$512 billion in global investment from public and private sectors combined is necessary to achieve SDG 2: Zero Hunger by 2030. Closing this financing gap to end hunger demands scaling large investments and shifting corporate mindsets to fully integrate sustainability as a core competitive advantage.
At a time when global solidarity is tested, the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge offers a powerful signal that action to end hunger and malnutrition is possible—and underway. But, collectively, much more action is needed.
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Photo courtesy of Richard Nyoni, Unsplash
