Climate Change and Impact on Food Security

What are the consequences of climate change on food security? What are the estimated investments that would offset the negative consequences for human well-being? A report on Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in the Developing World: What will it Cost? published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) says that agriculture and human well-being will be negatively affected by climate change. "Aggressive agricultural productivity investments of US$7.1–7.3 billion are needed to raise calorie consumption enough to offset the negative impacts of climate change on the health and well-being of children," the report suggested.

Using crop growth models under simulated climate change, the report predicts, among others,  that:

•  In developing countries, climate change will cause yield declines for the most important crops. South Asia will be particularly hard hit.
• Climate change will have varying effects on irrigated yields across regions, but irrigated yields for all crops in South Asia will experience large declines.
• Climate change will result in additional price increases for the most important agricultural crops–rice, wheat, maize, and soybeans.
• Calorie availability in 2050 will not only be lower than in the no–climate-change scenario—it will actually decline relative to 2000 levels throughout the developing world.

Download the full report at  http://www.ifpri.org/publication/climate-change-impact-agriculture-and-costs-adaptation