Factory farms are responsible for a staggering amount of climate disasters in the Global South, according to new research.
The research, published by leading animal welfare advocate World Animal Protection, is titled How Factory Farming Emissions are Worsening Climate Disasters in the Global South.
It reveals how factory farms in the Global North are responsible for causing $8.65 billion worth of ‘devastation caused by recent climate disasters in Africa, Asia, and South America’.
The research was showcased at the Food4Climate Pavilion during COP28, a pavilion led by a coalition of animal and food awareness organisations.
Among them are ProVeg International, World Animal Protection, Upfield and other leading global organisations including Compassion in World Farming.
According to World Animal Protection, the presentation ‘represents a unique coming together of private and third-sector organisations who are calling for food systems transformation for the benefit of people, animals and the planet’.
And it notes that: “The research projects that by 2050 the economic costs associated with climate-driven disasters worldwide could surpass a monumental $1 trillion annually.”
Notably, factory farms could be held accountable for over $100 billion of this colossal expense, it says.
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The impacts of climate change include frequent and extreme weather events, such as droughts, heatwaves, wildfires, storms and flooding, and according to the research, the ‘environmental impact of producing more than 80 billion land animals for food each year is contributing to the worsening of these crises’.
In addition, while factory farming contributes 11 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it notes that ‘profits derived by some of the world’s biggest meat processors and packers, based in the Global North, come at the expense of the livelihoods of those in the Global South’.
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In a statement sent to Vegan Food & Living, Kelly Dent, World Animal Protection’s Global Director of External Engagement, said: “World leaders must act meaningfully…The factory farming industry must be held accountable by governments and finance must be directed to the Global South communities on the front line of climate change.
“COP28 must take action to shore up a humane and sustainable food supply, with governments withdrawing subsidies for industrial meat and dairy and redirecting them to plant-based foods in ways that support small scale farmers.
“Animals remaining on factory farms should be spared the worst forms of suffering.”
Meanwhile, Raphaël Podselver, Director of UN Affairs at ProVeg International, added: “This research from our co-host World Animal Protection underscores the urgent need for collective action at COP28. We must urge stakeholders to prioritise sustainable practices in food production to mitigate these profound consequences.”
The Food4Climate Pavilion returned to COP for its second year this year, in a bid to call for a ‘transformational shift to plant-rich, balanced and diversified diets’.
World Animal Protection says its report ‘signals a clarion call for concerted efforts toward transformative change in our food systems to safeguard against escalating climate-related catastrophes’.
The evidence that eating meat hurts the planet is stacking up. Find out 6 surprising ways veganism helps the environment here
Featured photo © jjMiller11 via Getty Images
