” It takes about 10 fossil fuel calories to produce and transport each food calorie in the average American diet. ”

http://www.ecoliteracy.org/essays/fossil-food-consuming-our-future

the only viable solution is a technological solution that sidesteps the need for those in power to behave responsibly.

The solution must also sidestep the need to have commonality of belief systems , but must have commonality of goals if it is the case that the goals can only be achieved by global buy-in.
If there is only one way to achieve the goal then progress might be slower than if there were many ways to achieve the same result.

"The Ways to the One (goal) are as Many as the Lives of Men"