Lobby group Real Agriculture says it is time for farmers to walk tall and proud about the positive impact they make on climate. They are responding to a key finding in the 2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report the media largely overlooked. In fact, the IPCC has complained about several reporting oversights.
The Media Have Little or No Time for Farmers
Frank Mitloehner, University of California (Davis) animal science professor and air quality extension specialist came down strongly on this. “Land use and land use changes are a big challenge with respect to climate adaptation,” he said.
“This is certainly the case for agriculture, which can suffer devastating impacts from drought and flooding. The IPCC did mention the need for lower-carbon diets. However, they did not suggest we become vegetarian and vegans.” He blamed “lazy journalism, the growing weight of a merry band of loud activists and plant-based protein industry supporters” for this bias.
What Agriculture Needs to Do About Climate Change
There is little spare time for farmers in their busy routines. However, the IPCC report did say like forests, farmers take out more greenhouse gases than they put in. The media ignored this, Frank Mitloehner complains. “All I heard was what a devastating role animal agriculture or agriculture overall has to play in climate change.”
It is time for farmers to highlight that agriculture and forestry reduced U.S. greenhouse gases by 172 million metric tons.
However do they need to know more about agriculture’s impacts, and how they can help improve the climate situation.
Critics rely on global statistics, Real Agriculture says. Whereas North American beef production is much more efficient. Moreover many beef, dairy, pork, poultry, and other industries have pledged to do even more. We believe it is time to stop pointing fingers at each other. We need to buckle down and combine our efforts. Politicizing climate change does little good for anyone.
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Preview Image: Rice Paddy in California
