Media release
3 September 2008
IRL Chief Executive says climate change poses tough challenges to livestock agriculture
The world’s livestock industries will face a tough future as they come to grips with climate change.
In a speech to the 2008 Crawford Fund Conference in Canberra, Australia on 3 September, IRL Chief Executive Shaun Coffey
says livestock farming will be doubly impacted.
“Livestock enterprises are being directly affected by climate change while at the same time contributing to that
change.”
Mr Coffey, who is a livestock industry expert, told delegates that while there were ready options for livestock farmers
to adapt to climate change, the same was not true for mitigating the impact of livestock on greenhouse gas emissions.
“In a world where livestock numbers are tipped to double in the next 40 years to meet global food demand, it is not
unreasonable to expect emissions from animals will also rise. The task of reducing or maintaining emissions at current
levels from livestock is daunting.”
He cites one study that suggests the wealthy developed countries of the world such as the US, Australia and New Zealand
may need to reduce meat consumption by up to two-thirds by the year 2050.
“This has enormous implications in social and cultural terms, and brings into stark reality the investment needed to
achieve such a shift.
“Already some technical success has been achieved in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from sheep and cattle by about
20%, but these gains will be difficult to deliver on a global basis.”
Mr Coffey says a significant limitation on further reducing the rate of emissions is that much more research is needed
to understand basic animal performance.
“We need a better understanding of species and genome effects, of the efficiency of nutrition in ruminants like cattle,
and of the physiological traits enabling them to cope with extremes of temperature. Unfortunately, much of this research
is by nature incremental; the very type of research that now seems to be out of favour with some national research
bodies.”
During his speech, Mr Coffey also outlined other impacts of climate change such as the re-emergence of Rift Valley
disease in Africa and the spread of new diseases such as Blue Tongue into parts of Europe. He also discussed
possibilities for farming of wild life such as kangaroos as a substitute for cattle in arid areas of Australia.
Mr Coffey suggests that it will not be easy for the livestock industries to respond to climate change.
“It is not a simple technological issue, but involves complex adjustments in social and cultural norms. It will also
require significant capital reinvestment and depend on a more concerted research effort to understand the basic function
of animals,” he concludes.
ENDS
About the Crawford Fund
The ATSE Crawford Fund was established in June 1987 by The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering
to promote and support international R activities in which Australian research organisations and companies are active participants. It is named in honour of
the late Sir John Crawford to commemorate his outstanding services to international agricultural research.
The topic of its 2008 conference is “Agriculture in a changing climate: the new international research frontier”.
About Industrial Research Limited
Industrial Research Limited (IRL) is a commercial company with the New Zealand Government as shareholder and provides
research, science and advanced technology support to industry to enhance their performance and add value to the New
Zealand economy. At our core is innovation based on world-class science and engineering.
This research serves a range of industry sectors with an emphasis on the speciality manufacturing, specialised food
processing, biopharmaceuticals, the medical and energy industries, Information and Communications Technologies and
construction and engineering.