Abstract: The UN chose Uruguay as first case study for implementing a new set of post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), under the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). In 2006, the project issued the first report with the Agricultural Transformation Pathways (ATP) for Uruguay and other two selected study cases: U.K. and China. The methodological approach, inspired in previous work coordinated by SDSN was then used for the first time at country-level, recognizing two main pillars: (1) strong commitment and active participation of key public and private stakeholders; (2) step-by-step ?backcasting? method. The objective was achieving three goals: (i) bring knowledge by consulting national experts and practitioners; (ii) foster policy debates on the important issues facing the country; and (iii) generate buy-in among stakeholders to overcome a number of sociological and political roadblocks to transition. The so-called ?backcasting? approach for ?building a vision of the future we want? denotes a process in which a desired target is set for a future date, and then identifies the best pathway towards achieving that target by moving backward in time. This paper presents useful evidence and learned lessons emerged from the Uruguay case that may help other similar experiences. Relevant details about empirical construction of SDG-consistent ATPs for two contrasting agro-food chains were included in this article: beef and rice. Results demonstrated that setting an effective ATP is a complex task, requiring an important effort of academy and public authorities in creating incentives to bring private stakeholders to a minimum necessary degree of commitment.