Planetary Boundaries Explained: How the Scientific Framework Is Reshaping Business Sustainability

What Are Planetary Boundaries? A Scientific Framework for a Stable Planet

Catharina: Before we get into risk models and resilience planning, let’s start at zero. What are planetary boundaries, really?

Marina: The simplest way to think about planetary boundaries is that the Earth has a set of nine interdependent limits - these are risk thresholds we shouldn’t cross if we want the planet’s systems to remain stable. The framework was developed by a team of Earth system scientists led by Johan Rockström,  and was later applied by Kate Raworth in Doughnut Economics to craft a new economic vision for the 21st century based on current ecological circumstances and social justice. 

These boundaries span climate, biodiversity, freshwater, nitrogen and phosphorus flows, ocean acidification, and more. When we cross them, we destabilize the systems that keep life on Earth as we know it functioning. And most importantly, these nine boundaries are interconnected - cross one, and you create pressure on the others.

Credit: Azote for Stockholm Resilience Centre, based on analysis Sakschewski and Caesar et al. 2025.

Planetary Boundary Overshoot and Its Impact on Food & Beverage Supply Chains

Catharina: That sounds existential. But from a business standpoint - especially for food and beverage companies - what does planetary overshoot actually look like?

Marina: It looks like a disruption. Life-changing, measurable disruption.

Take Austria recently - major floods wiped out an entire sugar beet harvest and forced the shutdown of a production facility and damaged rail infrastructure. Or look at coffee: Arabica harvests are dropping due to climate instability, pushing producers toward Robusta, which grows more easily but is less refined in taste. That’s a systemic shift in a global market.

Even prices for everyday products are tied to these climate-related supply shocks. We’re no longer talking about theoretical risk. This is operational reality. Prices for key commodities like  wheat, maize and rice are very volatile, and global production levels of 15 key crops could fall by up to 35% by 2050, according to risk modelling by BCG/Quantis. 

Why Planetary Boundary Risks Are Already a Business Reality

Catharina: If the signals are this clear, why aren’t companies reacting with the urgency we’d expect?

Marina: Because the corporate metabolism is built for the short term. Companies optimize for quarterly KPIs, not for planetary stability in 2050.

Why Companies Are Slow to Respond to Climate and Nature Risks

Catharina: And yet the food & beverage sector is both deeply impacted and a major driver of planetary boundary transgressions, right?

Marina: Exactly. It’s a paradox: the industry is both victim and perpetrator.

For example:

• Agriculture is responsible for 90% of global deforestation
• 70% of the world’s freshwater is used for agriculture
• 62% of threatened species are harmed by it

This means food and beverage companies should actually be the global ambassadors for planetary boundary science. They feel the risk first and they have the leverage to drive systemic change.

Catharina: One thing we’re seeing is companies becoming far more involved in farming practices than ever before. Is that new?

Marina: Very. Traditionally, buying companies cared about price and quality specs. But they didn’t intervene in how crops were grown.

Now they’re stepping into soil management, irrigation decisions, fertilizer impacts, regenerative agriculture planning. It’s a massive systemic shift. If companies want supply security, they can’t be passive buyers anymore; they have to be partners in agricultural transformation.

Why the Food & Beverage Industry Is Both a Driver and a Victim of Planetary Boundary Transgression

Catharina: Let’s talk about solutions. What can companies actually do to reduce risk and operate within planetary boundaries?

Marina: It depends on the type of company.

Large multinational traders can buffer risk by shifting supply geographically - but they should still be investing in resilience programs for farmers. Otherwise, they leave entire supply chains vulnerable when shocks hit.

Companies with direct farmer relationships have an even bigger opportunity: they can support regenerative agriculture transitions, reduce dependency on synthetic fertilizers, introduce precision agriculture tools, and reassess water and soil practices holistically.

This isn’t about PR. It’s about survival.

The Role of Technology and Data in Managing Climate and Nature Risks

Catharina: Let’s zoom in on data - because as a SaaS company, this is where our ears perk up. Where does tech actually make a difference?

Marina: Technology can serve as a bridge between planetary science and business decision-making.

Planetary boundaries are complex. Agriculture is complex. Soil is incredibly complex - scientists will say “we still don’t understand soil fully.” So how do you make strategic decisions in that uncertainty?

You need tools that can:

• integrate local ecological thresholds into procurement systems
• model climate and nature risks dynamically
• evaluate regenerative agriculture ROI
• challenge assumptions companies have taken for granted

Unlike the ozone crisis - which had one clear pollutant and one clear solution - navigating multiple interconnected boundaries requires machine learning, satellite data, geospatial intelligence, and modeling at scale. We need to move beyond sustainability as a data problem to systems-wide solutions. 

Catharina: With all this complexity, what gives you optimism?

Marina: The fact that we do know the direction of travel. We know what the safe operating space looks like.

And even more: the people. The wave of climate leaders and activists who emerged around 2018–2019 are now stepping into positions of influence. They’re working quietly in institutions, businesses, and civil society. The movement is more mature - and more strategic - than ever before.

What keeps me going is seeing the increasing number of people who understand this concept and aren't giving up.

A Call to Action for Business Leaders: Why Planetary Science Matters Now

Catharina: Final question -  what’s your call to action for business leaders reading this?

Marina: Learn the science. Truly understand the systems that underpin your business. Planetary boundaries aren’t a sustainability framework - they’re the operating conditions of your company’s future.

And the leaders who understand this now will be the ones still in business later.

A heartfelt thank you to Marina Haydn for generously sharing her expertise and helping make this interview not only possible, but truly exceptional!

Sources and References

Quantis: Building Resilience in Agrifood Supply Chains

Raworth, K (2025). The Evolving Doughnut, Doughnut Economics Action Lab, Oxford. https://doi.org/10.64981/XGRX2738 

FAO. (2021, November 6). COP26: Agricultural expansion drives almost 90 percent of global deforestation. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. https://www.fao.org/newsroom/detail/cop26-agricultural-expansion-drives-almost-90-percent-of-global-deforestation/en

UNESCO. (2024). The United Nations World Water Development Report 2024: Water for Prosperity and Peace UNESCO / UN-Water. https://www.unesco.org/reports/wwdr/en/2024/s

Climate Champions. (2022, November 1). Agriculture & COP27. https://www.climatechampions.net/news/agriculture-cop27/

Azote for Stockholm Resilience Centre, based on analysis Sakschewski and Caesar et al. 2025.

Unwetter zerstört Felder: Ernte der Zuckerrüben bedroht. Bayerisches Landwirtschaftliches Wochenblatt. Published October 4, 2024. Article on storm damage in Lower Austria affecting sugar beet fields and harvest logistics. Available at: https://www.wochenblatt-dlv.de/oesterreich/unwetter-zerstoert-felder-ernte-zuckerrueben-bedroht-578322wochenblatt-dlv.de