Growing Returns

We can feed a growing population while shrinking fertilizer pollution. Here’s how.

By Alison Eagle / Bio / Published: December 18, 2024

Farmers must estimate how much fertilizer and other inputs their crop will need in the face of increased weather variability.

Nitrous oxide might not make the news like carbon dioxide, but it’s a powerful hidden force behind the extreme, climate-driven weather we’re experiencing. This super-pollutant is the third most significant greenhouse gas, with a warming impact almost 300 times greater than carbon dioxide. Lowering it is essential for avoiding the most dangerous climate impacts.

The newly released “Global Nitrous Oxide Assessment” confirms a sobering reality: atmospheric concentrations of the gas are rising faster than previously anticipated. The majority of nitrous oxide emissions come from synthetic fertilizer and manure. Yet nitrogen applications are also essential for producing the crops that feed a growing population.

We don’t have to choose between food security or climate stability. We can and must support farmers in achieving both priorities.

Reducing nitrous oxide emissions isn’t just possible — it’s within reach.

A combination of existing strategies could slash global nitrous oxide emissions by over 40%, but scaling these solutions requires commitment and innovation, but scaling these solutions requires commitment and innovation.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged environmental, farmers, global carbon emissions, global warming, nitrous oxide | Comments are closed

Four takeaways from a year of global action on food, agriculture and climate

By Jennifer Chow / Bio / Published: December 16, 2024

Global leaders increasingly recognize that agriculture and food systems must be part of solutions to the climate crisis. From the first Food Systems Pavilion at a UN climate conference in 2022, to 160 countries recognizing food and agriculture as a climate imperative in 2023, food advocates came into the 2024 UN climate conference, COP29, with wind in our sails. We made progress, but the world needs to do more — and quickly.

As we close out the year and look ahead to COP30 in late 2025, significantly more work remains to ensure farmers, fishers and ranchers can feed a growing population and lower climate pollution from food systems.

Here are four reflections from EDF and our partners about the progress made this year and the urgent work that remains to make farms and food systems more resilient, sustainable and equitable.

Also posted in Food / Tagged agriculture, Climate, COP29, food | Read 1 Response

A new resource hub empowers crop insurers and farmers to boost financial resilience to extreme weather

By Vincent Gauthier / Bio / Published: December 13, 2024

A farmer stands in a field of soybean crop and corn residue, facing a glowing sunset.

From extensive droughts across the Great Plains and back-to-back hurricanes damaging vegetable and citrus crops in the Southeast, the last two production seasons have demonstrated the intensifying damage of extreme weather on America’s farms. In 2023 alone, natural disasters caused nearly $22 billion in crop and rangeland losses. While crop insurance is a critical safety net for farmers, the growing impact of climate change underscores the need for proactive resilience strategies on the farm.

Recognizing this, Chubb and its crop insurance division Rain & Hail — the largest crop and agriculture insurance provider in the U.S. — has launched a new resource hub designed to equip farmers and crop insurance agents with essential tools, insights and advisors to increase on-farm resilience. Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps fellow Carter Purcell led the development of the hub during her time at Chubb.

The new resource hub highlights the increasing need for comprehensive risk management solutions that not only protect farms financially in the short term, but also support long-term resilience.

Learn more about the relationship between crop insurance and resilience to extreme weather, and why it’s critical to provide solutions that support farmers’ short- and long-term financial resilience.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural finance, crop insurance, farm finance, financial resilience | Comments are closed

To feed a growing population, farmers need quality financing to flow

By Jennifer Chow / Bio / Published: November 14, 2024

Farmers harvesting coffee in the countryside of Brazil.

Agriculture is both a driver of climate change and on the frontlines of climate impacts. A variety of farming practices, technologies and system changes can reduce emissions to help stabilize the climate and build resilience to help protect global food production. However, a lack of access to fit-for-purpose finance keeps farmers from transitioning to climate-smart farming practices.

This year at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, countries will gather to set a new global climate finance goal, known as the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), for how much money high-income countries will provide to low-income countries for climate action.

This negotiation presents an opportunity to elevate farmers’ needs in financing the climate transition in agriculture.

Also posted in Food / Tagged agricultural finance, agriculture banking, COP29, ecosystems, farm finance | Comments are closed

New Report: How high-quality carbon offsets can lower livestock methane emissions

By EDF Staff / Published: September 23, 2024

Authors: Erin Leonard and Maggie Monast

With more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide over the first 20 years after its release, methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gasses. One major contributor to global methane is livestock operations — 32% of methane emissions from human activity come from livestock and animal agriculture.

The good news is that methane’s massive warming potential also creates an opportunity for a big and rapid impact if we can mitigate those emissions. To avoid the worst effects of climate change, we need to rapidly lower livestock methane emissions, a process that requires support and incentives to help farmers and ranchers adopt changes in their businesses.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural methane, agriculture, carbon credit, climate change, farmers, farming, food production, livestock emissions, livestock methane, methane reduction, new report, ranchers, resilience | Comments are closed

Why food companies must act now to protect public funding for climate-smart agriculture

By Katie Anderson / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: June 5, 2024

The reauthorization of the farm bill, which offers critical funding to support farmers and food businesses, is currently being debated in Congress. This is a crucial moment to support farmers and businesses—and major food companies need to make sure they take advantage of it.

What is at stake? Billions of dollars in funding intended to help American farmers adopt innovative practices and protect their businesses from climate-related disasters. If done right, food companies will see increased farmer engagement in climate-smart agriculture, supporting farmers in remaining competitive and in participating in new markets as consumer trends shift to more sustainably produced products.

Food companies can use their voice in Washington to safeguard this essential funding for mitigating agricultural emissions and protecting food supply chains. Contact us to learn more. Read More »

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged corporate sustainability, dairy methane, farm bill | Comments are closed

New research could help resource managers improve the health and resilience of the Mississippi River Basin

By Kelly Suttles / Published: May 28, 2024

Spanning across 31 states, from Minnesota down to the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, the Mississippi River Basin is one of the most significant waterways in the world. Not only is it important for commercial purposes, but it also provides critical wildlife habitat, fresh water and recreational opportunities for communities.

Given the river’s complex alterations and increasing climate impacts, it is more important than ever to take actions that will protect and nurture this treasured basin. Earlier this year, Environmental Defense Fund and co-authors* released new research that may prove beneficial to resource managers, aimed at evaluating and implementing actions to improve the Mississippi River Basin’s overall health and resilience. Based on this research, we are sharing a comprehensive framework that can be used to effectively manage the Mississippi River Basin as part of a whole basin governance structure that includes monitoring, modeling and adaptive management. Read More »

Also posted in Coasts and Watersheds / Tagged climate resilience, ecosystem resilience, Mississippi River, Mississippi River Delta, Upper Mississippi River Basin | Comments are closed

Closing the enteric methane emissions innovation gap: A call for funding high-quality research

By EDF Staff / Published: May 23, 2024

By Peri Rosenstein and Nicole Jenkins

Methane emissions are a potent greenhouse gas, warming the climate more than 80 times faster than carbon dioxide on a 20-year timescale. Rapidly and significantly reducing methane is the most effective way to reduce the rate of warming, especially over the next few decades.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agricultural methane, agriculture, agriculture research, climate change, climate resilience, farmers, food production, methane, research, research funding, sustainability | Comments are closed

Good manure management must involve ammonia emissions, too

By Mindi DePaola / Published: May 8, 2024

When it comes to livestock and environmental impacts, methane emission reductions are often top of mind — and for good reason. Lowering methane emissions from animal agriculture is one of the fastest ways to slow down climate change. However, important local air pollutants like ammonia are seldom discussed with the same frequency or urgency.

Agriculture needs a path forward that jointly addresses its global climate impacts and its local environmental and public health impacts in an equitable way. Methane and ammonia must be managed in tandem. Read More »

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged agriculture, climate change, climate resilience | Comments are closed

Two ways to improve soil carbon measurement

By Anna Raffeld / Published: April 25, 2024

Carbon markets and carbon monitoring programs track changes in cropland soil carbon stock over time to determine how agricultural management practices impact carbon storage in soil.

Soil carbon stock is typically measured by taking soil samples prior to the adoption of a new farming practice, followed by additional sampling after the practice has been in effect for several years.

However, commonly used methods to measure soil carbon stocks may not accurately capture how that carbon is changing over time, potentially undermining important mitigation efforts.

We need scientifically robust and accessible ways to measure soil carbon to ensure that different practice changes deliver reliable results. New research from Environmental Defense Fund highlights two best practices for measuring carbon in soil.

Posted in Agriculture / Tagged carbon sequestration, carbon storage, climate mitigation, Soil carbon | Read 1 Response