A new economic framework · Est. 2024

Food is not a commodity.
It is a system of value.

The Amber Economy redefines food as a strategic asset with five dimensions of value — and builds the frameworks, metrics and institutions to preserve it across global food systems.

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Value dimensions — Amber Economy

Nutritional
92
Economic
78
Social
68
Territorial
55
Environmental
84
The Global Food Paradox

We produce enough food for everyone.
Yet the system keeps failing.

Hunger, food loss and environmental degradation are not isolated problems. They are the result of a single systemic failure: the inability to preserve and allocate food value. Amber Economy provides the unified framework to address all three simultaneously.

1/3

of all food produced globally is lost or wasted every year

$1T

in economic value destroyed annually through food loss and waste

733M

people face food insecurity while surpluses go unredistributed

8–10%

of global greenhouse gas emissions linked to food loss and waste

The Framework

From commodity optimization to value preservation

Traditional economic models evaluate food through production, market prices and trade flows. These metrics capture only a fraction of what food truly represents for societies, territories and ecosystems.

The Amber Economy shifts the central question from "How do we produce more?" to "How do we preserve the full value already contained in food?"

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Framework Principles

Food as Strategic Asset

Recognizing the full spectrum of value embedded in every unit of food — beyond its market price.

Systemic Value Preservation

Designing food systems that preserve, recover and maximize multidimensional value at every stage.

Multidimensional Measurement

Quantifying impact across economic, nutritional, social, territorial and environmental dimensions.

Multidimensional Food Value

The Five Dimensions of Food Value

Every unit of food carries multiple layers of value simultaneously. When food is lost or wasted, all five dimensions disappear at once. The Amber Economy makes this invisible loss visible and measurable.

01

Nutritional

Supports human health, development and life quality across communities and generations.

02

Economic

Represents accumulated investment, labor, infrastructure and market productivity.

03

Social

Strengthens community bonds, reduces inequality and expands equitable food access.

04

Territorial

Connects ecosystems, cultural heritage and local economies into regional resilience.

05

Environmental

Embodies water, soil, biodiversity and energy invested across the production chain.

Amber Economy Lab

How the framework becomes real

The Amber Economy is not a theoretical proposal. It is a structured methodology designed to be implemented within food systems across territories, sectors and institutions.

Implement Amber Economy →
Measurement System

Key Amber Economy Indicators

Amber Economy translates food systems into measurable multidimensional value. These indicators allow governments, businesses and institutions to quantify how effectively food value is preserved.

Nutritional Value

  • Meals Secured Index (MSI)
  • Nutritional Access Rate (NAR)
  • Meal Frequency Index (MFI)

Economic Value

  • Total Food Value Recovered (TFVR)
  • Total Economic Benefit (TEB)
  • Return on Food Value (RFV)

Environmental Value

  • Total Food Waste Avoided (TFWA)
  • GHG Emissions Avoided (GHG)
  • Water Footprint Avoided (WFA)

Social Value

  • Social Impact Score (SIS)
  • Distribution Equity Index (DEI)
  • Community Activation Index (CAI)

Territorial Value

  • Total Active Nodes (TAN)
  • Territorial Coverage Rate (TCR)
  • Territorial Resilience Index (TRI)
Amber Value Index (AVI)

The first integrated metric to measure food systems as multidimensional value systems — aggregating performance across all five dimensions into a single comparable score for territories, institutions and food system operators.

Applications

Where the Amber Economy applies

Public Policy

  • Food value preservation models
  • Territorial resilience strategies
  • Multi-actor governance design
  • SDG-aligned food policy frameworks

Business & Industry

  • Surplus optimization strategies
  • Food recovery system design
  • Value-based supply chain management
  • ESG and impact reporting frameworks

Impact Investment

  • Multi-dimensional impact measurement
  • SROI-aligned investment frameworks
  • Scalable food value models
  • Blended finance for food systems
Food Impact Economy: Toward an Amber Economy — Karen Brugés & Mónica Colín
The Book

The foundational work introducing the Amber Economy

Food Impact Economy: Toward an Amber Economy introduces the conceptual and analytical foundations of the framework — redefining how global food systems are understood, governed and evaluated.

Written for policymakers, business leaders, researchers and development practitioners who work at the intersection of food security, sustainability and economic transformation.

Buy in Spanish (Amazon) Buy in English (Amazon)
The Creators

Behind the Amber Economy framework

Co-Architect · Amber Economy

Karen Lorena Brugés Solórzano

Ecosystem Builder · G100 Zero Hunger Global Chair · Co-Founder, Amber Economy and Food Impact Economy

Global thought leader in food systems transformation, creator of the Amber Economy framework and co-author of Food Impact Economy. Speaker at Harvard, the UN, the OECD and the Paris Peace Forum.

karenbruges.com →

Co-Architect · Amber Economy

Mónica Colín de Velázquez

Economist · Co-Author, Food Impact Economy

Economist and co-developer of the Food Impact Economy framework. Brings the analytical economic foundations to the Amber Economy, connecting food systems design with policy, governance and multi-stakeholder coordination across institutions and territories.

Contact →
Global Coalition

Join the transition toward an Amber Economy

Governments, businesses, multilateral organizations, universities and civil society actors are invited to participate in the transformation of global food systems. Together, we can redesign how food value is preserved, redistributed and measured.

Join the Global Coalition Food Impact Economy →