Supporting Climate-Friendly Food Production

Worldwatch Blogs: Supporting Climate-Friendly Food Production

This [United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization] report, Innovations in Sustainable Agriculture: Supporting Climate-Friendly Food Production,
discusses six sustainable approaches to land and water use, in both
rural and urban areas, that are helping farmers and other food producers
mitigate or adapt to climate change—and often both. They are:

• Building Soil Fertility: Alternatives to
  heavy chemical use in agriculture, such as avoiding unnecessary tilling
  or raising both crops and livestock on the same land, can help to
  drastically reduce the total amount of energy expended to produce a crop
  or animal, reducing overall emissions.
• Agroforestry: Because trees remove carbon
  dioxide from the atmosphere, keeping them on farms whenever possible can
  help mitigate climate change. Agroforestry also keeps the soil
  healthier and more resilient by maximizing the amount of organic matter,
  microorganisms, and moisture held within it. Agroforestry also provides
  shade for livestock and certain crops, and creates habitats for animals
  and insects, such as bees, that pollinate many crops.
• Urban Farming: Growing food in
  cities can mitigate the greenhouse gas emissions released from the
  transport, processing, and storage of food destined for urban
  populations. Urban agriculture also increases the total area of
  non-paved land in cities, making urban landscapes more resilient to
  flooding and other weather shocks, while improving the aesthetic value
  of these landscapes.
• Cover Cropping/Green Manure: Cover
  cropping, also known as green manure, is the practice of strategically
  planting crops that will deliver a range of benefits to a farming
  system, and often plowing these crops into the soil instead of
  harvesting their organic matter. Planting cover crops improves soil
  fertility and moisture by making soil less vulnerable to drought or heat
  waves. Cover crops also serve as a critical deterrent against pests and
  diseases that affect crops or livestock, such as corn root worm or Rift
  Valley fever, particularly as warmer temperatures enable these
  organisms to survive in environments that were previously too cold for
  them.
• Improving Water Conservation and Recycling:
  Innovations in water conservation, including recycling wastewater in
  cities, using precise watering techniques such as drip irrigation rather
  than sprinklers, and catching and storing rainwater, all help to reduce
  the global strain on already-scarce water resources.
• Preserving Biodiversity and Indigenous Breeds: Growing
  diverse and locally adapted indigenous crops, such as yams, quinoa, and
  cassava, can provide a source of income and improve farmers’ chances of
  withstanding the effects of climate change, such as heat stress,
  drought, and the expansion of disease and pest populations. Preserving
  plant and animal biodiversity also reduces farmers’ overreliance on a
  small number of commodity crops that make them vulnerable to shifts in
  global markets.

By tapping into the multitude of climate-friendly farming practices
that already exist, agriculture can continue to provide food for the
world’s population, as well as be a source of livelihood for the 1.3
billion people who rely on farming for income and sustenance. If
agriculture is to play a positive role in the global fight against
climate change, however, agricultural practices that mitigate or adapt
to climate change will need to receive increased research, attention,
and investment in the coming years.