BackgroundThis study contributes to the growing interest and the need to enhance overtime transformational changes in the agrifood systems through understanding the environmental impacts of the tea agrifood system operations and identifying greenhouse gas emissions channels for improving and designing sustainable solutions to achieve SDG 13 (Climate action).ObjectivesIt explores the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and methods used to measure carbon footprint and global warming potential. The study identifies different adaptation and mitigation strategies that reduce emissions from the tea agrifood system.MethodsFocusing on carbon footprint as the main factor in environmental sustainability and agrifood system resilience, 60 articles were systematically analyzed using MAXQDA software.ResultsThe study found that the life cycle assessment of tea agrifood systems was highly conducted using SimaPro, different unspecified tools, and spreadsheets under ISO14040:2006, ISO14044, and PAS 2050:2011 impact evaluation standards. Moreover, electricity and energy were revealed as the leading sources of carbon emissions (CO2), followed by the overuse of chemical fertilizers, which emit other greenhouse gasses (CH4 and N2O) at the cultivation stage, and the use of coal and firewood in the processing and packaging stages. Likewise, the highest environmental footprint was due to consumption activities (47%), processing (27%), cultivation (17%), and packaging (9%).ConclusionThe study highlighted that various adaptation and mitigation strategies, including improving energy use efficiency, use of organic fertilizers, and waste composting from tea processing, can reduce carbon footprints, improve environmental sustainability, and enhance resilient, greener agrifood systems.