Abstract
The livestock sector is vulnerable to climate change and related policy in two ways. First, livestock production and performance are directly impacted by climate with many projected effects being negative. Second, the sector may need to alter operations to limit the effects of climate change through adaptation and mitigation. Potential adaptation strategies involve land use decisions, animal feeding changes, genetic manipulation and alterations in species and/or breeds. In terms of mitigation, livestock is a substantial contributor to global non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions. Mitigation opportunities involve altered land use for grazing and feed production, feeding practices, manure treatment and herd size reduction. In addition, strengthening institutions that promote markets and trade, as well as local support programs can help both mitigation and adaptation. Previous literature has summarized the options available to individual producers. This overview extends the literature by including sector-level response as well as the relationships between adaptation and mitigation activities.
Highlights
Livestock are an important protein and calorie source for humans and are an important income source for rural households [1]
This paper presents an overview of the vast livestock related climate change (CC) literature on impacts, adaptation and mitigation
Evidence and theory indicate that CC affects livestock growth, appetite, disease incidence, health, immune functions, mortality, animal reproduction rates and quality of dairy products, directly [5,6,7]
Summary
Livestock are an important protein and calorie source for humans and are an important income source for rural households [1]. Animal productivity can be negatively or positively affected by climate change (CC). This stimulates adaptive measures like altering management, location, animal numbers, or herd characteristics. This paper presents an overview of the vast livestock related CC literature on impacts, adaptation and mitigation. Have recently presented reviews of livestock adaptation and mitigation activity options, suitable within various types of livestock systems and across locations. To expand this knowledge base, this article considers adaptation options with an economic orientation plus includes broader sectoral level CC response options and incentives. The relationships between mitigation and adaptation options are explored as they relate to co-benefits and shared costs
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