Schroders has announced the launch of the Schroder ISF Global Sustainable Food and Water fund.

The fund will target emerging technologies and industries changing the food and water system and opportunities across value chains, including water management, food production and processing, distribution, and recycling.

The fund will comprise 35-60 stocks from a ‘focus list’ of around 190 stocks selected using  Schroders proprietary tools which filter global equities for companies actively contributing to making the food and water system sustainable. The fund will be managed by Mark Lacey, Felix Odey and Alex Monk and is classified under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation as Article 9.

Mark Lacey, Head of Global Resource Equities and Portfolio Manager of SISF Global Sustainable Food and Water, says, “Our current food and water system is untenable and will experience an unprecedented confluence of pressures over the next 30 years. By 2050 the world will need to produce 70% more food and drinking water, whilst producing less carbon and using 70% fewer resources.

“Regulation, consumer behaviour, and new technology are changing fast. These are now starting to impact the long overdue change that is required to make the whole system less carbon intensive, wasteful and polluting, whilst improving biodiversity and encouraging healthier diets globally. Current estimates suggest this structural shift will require at least $30 trillion of capital reallocation by 2050.

“We believe companies whose products and services are facilitating this movement will be in great demand and can exhibit strong long-term growth potential. That is why SISF Global Sustainable Food and Water will invest across the entire food value chain, allowing us to capture this whole opportunity.”