Agriculture
FAO draft report backs growth of livestock industry despite emissions
Experts say the UN’s food agency has shied away from recommending less animal farming, though cutting methane emissions is a quick way to curb warming
Despite dilution, officials say new nature law can restore EU carbon sinks
To meet climate goals, the European Union needs to reverse the decline of its carbon-storing ecosystems like forests and peatlands
Right-wing pushback on EU’s green laws misjudges rural views
Populist and far-right parties are wooing rural voters in the EU elections by exploiting a backlash against green policies – but new research suggests it may not work
The great COP food systems illusion: UN climate talks deliver no real-world action
Negotiations on food and agriculture have moved too slowly, while special initiatives fail to hold countries accountable on their commitments
Can the rising cost of chocolate help cocoa producers go green?
Cocoa farmers have long faced difficult growing conditions and low pay. Recent record high prices have highlighted the need for change.
World Bank tiptoes into fiery debate over meat emissions
The bank has advised wealthy nations to cut subsidies for high-emissions foods but stopped far short of promoting veganism
Spring Meetings can jump-start financial reform for food and climate
The World Bank and IMF have a big part to play in raising the $3 trillion needed to help countries meet global development goals and the Paris accord
What will it take to protect India’s angry farmers from climate threats?
Indebted farmers, facing falling yields and water scarcity, want legally guaranteed price support for more crops – but that may not fix their climate woes
Companies still missing in action on methane-cutting goals
The farming and fossil fuel industries must help governments cut methane emissions 30% this decade by harnessing existing technologies and changing practices
UK aid cuts leave Malawi vulnerable to droughts and cyclones
After the UK cut short a £52m climate adaptation scheme in Malawi, vulnerable communities saw their livelihoods destroyed by Cyclone Freddy
Sugar rush: how farmers spurred India’s G20 biofuels alliance
Nineteen countries signed up to an India-led alliance this month to boost production of biofuels, but experts raise sustainability concerns
Soy, beef and gold gangsters: Why Bolivia and Venezuela won’t protect the Amazon
Bolivia wants to chop down trees to grow soy, beef and palm oil while Venezuela is unwilling or unable to restrain illegal gold mining
Multilateral banks’ investments in industrial livestock undermine their Paris climate commitments
Public money should stop flowing towards the expansion of animal agriculture, which is responsible for a fifth of the world’s emissions
World Bank body delays vote on controversial loan to Brazilian dairy firm
Campaigners say the $32m loan to dairy firm Alvoar Lacteos could damage forests in Brazil
Revealed: How Shell cashed in on dubious carbon offsets from Chinese rice paddies
Shell’s rice farming offset projects are under review. Climate Home found them riddled with accounting loopholes and questionable integrity claims.
Cost of a KitKat: Big brands leave sugar farmers at the mercy of climate extremes
Nestlé, Coca Cola and Pepsi are among the buyers from Nanglamal Sugar Complex, which smallholders say gives no help with climate resilience
India’s female cane cutters face child marriage and hysterectomy
Women and girls in India’s sugar fields are exposed to sexual harassment, backbreaking work and inadequate healthcare
Migrant labourers suffer exploitation in India’s sugar fields
Millions of people migrate each year to work in India’s sugar fields under extreme heat, harsh conditions and debt bondage
India’s sugarcane farmers struggle to cope with droughts and floods
In India more intense droughts and floods are destroying sugarcane crops and plunging millions of farmers and their families into debt
Africa’s broken food markets must be fixed to tackle hunger
A handful of large companies make big profits by controlling the food trade in Africa, while doing nothing to increase its climate resilience