WASHINGTON DC, May 29 (IPS) – Last week the World Bank Group released a new report report That highlights the urgent need to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions to tackle the climate crisis and calls on countries to take action. While the World Bank’s recognition of the harmful climate impacts of industrial agriculture is a crucial step forward, it is simply not enough.
To tackle the climate crisis, the World Bank must walk the talk and take action on its own portfolio – which currently has billions invested in livestock farming – by halting all financing for the global expansion of factory farming.
First, the climate consequences of industrial livestock farming are staggering. As the World Bank report points out, the global agri-food system is responsible for approx a third of all global greenhouse gas emissions, and industrial livestock farming accounts for the lion’s share.
Research has shown that livestock farming alone will consume almost half of the global 1.5°C emissions budget by 2030, and as much as 80% by 2050. The World Bank report aptly states that “the system that feeds us is also feeding the planet’s climate crisis.”
The World Bank cannot effectively tackle the climate crisis without a significant shift in lending away from highly polluting industrial livestock farming and towards a more sustainable food system. Second, the World Bank’s continued financing of industrial livestock farming is in stark contrast to its own commitments, ranging from the goals of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals to the Bank’s biodiversity policy, and even its own mission statement.
The World Bank itself says that “the world cannot achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement without achieving net zero emissions in the agri-food system.” Still the Bank continues to finance the expansion of industrial livestock farming – by making Bank financing available in contradiction with its commitment to align its strategies, activities and investments with the climate goals of the Paris Agreement.
The Bank’s financial support for industrial livestock farming also runs counter to other commitments, including the Bank’s commitment to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
A 2019 report from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Development highlights the negative human health and environmental impacts of industrial agriculture, including livestock and feed production, and the ways in which it undermines several SDGs, including poverty eradication (1), eliminating hunger (2), good health (3), clean water (6), decent work (8), responsible consumption and production (12) and climate action (13).
In addition, despite that of the World Bank claim that it “puts nature at the center of development efforts”, the Bank continues to undermine biodiversity by supporting the expansion of industrial livestock farming while this sector, according to of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), poses the main threat to more than 85% of the 28,000 species threatened with extinction. In addition to global obligations, financing industrial livestock farming also conflicts with the mission of the World Bank itself. World Bank President Ajay Banga took over the reins at the World Bank a year ago with a mandate to help countries mitigate the climate crisis.
As part of that mandate, the World Bank updated its mission statement to say it will work “to end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity on a livable planet.” To achieve this mission, the World Bank must reconsider its investments and immediately stop financing the expansion of industrial livestock farming. Finally, the World Bank, like all development institutions, has limited resources and must carefully choose the best projects to achieve its overall mission. In practice, this means that every dollar spent on industrial livestock farming is a dollar not invested in what the World Bank itself recognized is the necessary just transition to a sustainable agri-food system. The Bank must shift its support to the transition to a just and sustainable global food system. As the Bank rightly notes in its recent report report“The world has avoided confronting agri-food system emissions for as long as possible due to the scope and complexity of the task. Now is the time to put agriculture and food at the top of the mitigation agenda. If not, the world will not be able to guarantee a livable planet for future generations.”
It is time for the Bank to heed its own warning. The World Bank must immediately end its support for industrial livestock farming – one of the leading causes of climate change, biodiversity loss, public health crises and food insecurity – and focus its resources and significant influence on reforming and reforming agricultural and food systems. Our future on a livable planet depends on it.
Carolina Galvani is executive director of Sinergia Animal, an international animal protection organization working in the South to end the worst practices of industrial animal agriculture. Monique Michail is Director of Agriculture and Climate Finance Campaigns at Friends of the Earth US Sinergia Animal and Friends of the Earth are members of the Stop financing factory farming coalition.
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All rights reservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service