Speaking at one of IFAD’s Climate and Environment Lectures,
Doctor Tim Searchinger focused his analysis
of the livestock industry in developing countries and its potential for
sustainable intensification.
Tim Searchinger is a Research Scholar at Princeton
University’s Woodrow Wilson School, and also a Senior Fellow of the World
Resources Institute, where he is the technical director of its World Resources
Report on global agriculture.
''In the specific countries we have looked at, there are
win-win opportunities to boost the productivity and incomes for small farmers
in ways that protect forests and reduce greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions'',
Searchinger said.
Climate smart agriculture (CSA) is an essential part of the work that
IFAD is doing in rural areas. But increasing yields in a sustainable way
without expanding the amount of farm land or overusing the current land is a
tough process. Climate smart agriculture can hold the key.
Searchinger discussed three separate case studies: Vietnam,
Colombia and Zambia, and then tied them together to discuss implications at the
global level. He stated that with growing populations the agriculture sector
will have to expand, but simultaneously must reduce emissions by 70 per cent by
2050.
In Colombia
and Vietnam, a detailed analysis of inefficient livestock systems has
identified opportunities for
improvements in beef and dairy systems, with associated consequences for production, income, land use
and emissions.
''Colombia has a difference in emissions of a factor of 6
(of CO2e/Kg of meat) from one region to another'', he said. This means the amount of emissions per kilogram of meat or litre of milk are up
to six times that of cattle raised using
climate-smart practices.
''So the problem is, we need to produce 70 percent more
food. Doing that without increasing emissions at all is going to be very, very
hard. Doing that in the developing world without increasing emissions at all is
probably impossible. But by being more efficient in our use of land, animals
and inputs, we can hold down emissions a lot,''.
Boosting the productivity of livestock is an enormous
opportunity to reduce greenhouse gases. Agriculture currently accounts for 13
per cent of all emissions. If CSA can be scaled up, there may still be a rise
in net emissions, but it will be a fraction of what emissions would be in a
business as usual scenario, and they will be
offset even further by increased
productivity and yields.