The Collision of Climate Narratives and Green Food Production Cost

Key factors in limiting the negative impact of human society on the planet’s climate include the availability of cost-effective low-carbon technologies and manufacturers’ ability to shift mass consumer demand from traditional to environmentally friendly products. Private companies, focused on maximizing profits, face a dilemma: follow a reactive logic of minimizing regulatory risks or develop proactive strategies that turn climate challenges into a source of competitive advantage. The aim of the study is to find a way to improve the internal operational efficiency of green goods producers to achieve price parity with conventional analogs, that, all other things being equal, will provide the mass consumer with the opportunity to realize an environmentally sound purchasing model. This work is conceptual and analytical in nature and focuses on developing a methodology for managing value creation in the production of green products, applicable under conditions of confidentiality of cost data specific to each company. Results. The article argues that mass demand for green products can only be ensured by increasing a company’s internal operating efficiency to bring their production costs closer to those of traditional counterparts. The use of an internal carbon price (ICP) is proposed as a tool for achieving this goal. Conclusions. Unlike the traditional approach focused on hedging regulatory risks, the authors position the ICP as a tool for strategic financial planning. This allows for the a priori integration of future environmental risks’ cost in target markets into project performance calculations, creating internal sources of innovation funding and establishing economic incentives to achieve price parity with traditional counterparts. The article demonstrates that this approach not only reduces strategic risks but also creates conditions for market share and company capitalization growth through proactive adaptation to changing market terms.

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