Tree crops, such as apples, cherries, olives, nuts, coffee, and cacao, occupy over 183 million hectares globally and play a crucial role in food production, biodiversity conservation, and climate mitigation. Despite their importance, these crops often remain overlooked in agricultural policies, which tend to prioritize annual crops like wheat, sunflowers, and rice. Recognizing the potential of tree crops is essential to achieving sustainable agricultural practices and addressing pressing global challenges.
Unlike annual crops, tree crops have longer life cycles and more complex vegetation structures, including layers of herbaceous plants, shrubs, and trees. These systems create stable habitats that support biodiversity when managed sustainably. They also contribute to ecosystem resilience by preventing soil erosion, enhancing soil fertility, and providing year-round habitats for numerous species. The permanent root systems of tree crops play a critical role in carbon sequestration, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, tree crops improve connectivity in fragmented ecosystems and serve as natural buffers around protected areas, mitigating the effects of intensive agriculture.
Tree crops also have significant socioeconomic benefits. Their cultivation often requires less mechanization and more manual labor, creating vital employment opportunities, especially in low- and middle-income countries where these crops are prevalent. By supporting rural livelihoods, tree crops contribute to poverty alleviation and social equity. Furthermore, they produce around 1,000 million metric tons of food annually, underscoring their importance in global food security.
However, the full potential of tree crops remains untapped due to insufficient attention in policy frameworks. Agricultural policies tend to favor annual crops, which have shorter growth cycles and simpler vegetation structures. While promoting sustainable practices for annual crops is important, tree crops offer unique ecological advantages that require tailored approaches to management. Policymakers are urged to develop specific agendas that promote sustainable practices in tree crop agriculture, including regulations, financial incentives, and supportive policies.
Sustainable management of tree crops involves local practices and landscape-scale measures adapted to diverse contexts. These efforts are particularly important as tree cropping areas overlap with many of the world’s biodiversity-rich regions. By implementing strategies that maximize the ecological and economic benefits of tree crops, it is possible to address critical environmental and social challenges. This includes enhancing biodiversity conservation, mitigating climate change, and improving rural livelihoods.
Tree crops represent a powerful tool for creating a more sustainable and equitable future. They offer an opportunity to rethink agriculture’s role in addressing global challenges, from biodiversity loss to climate change and social inequality. By leveraging the potential of tree crops, it is possible to build resilient agricultural systems that benefit both people and the planet. This call to action highlights the need for comprehensive research, tailored policies, and concerted efforts to ensure the sustainable management of tree crops worldwide.
