Experts at a recent EU conference on climate change held in Greece, expressed grave concern for Bulgaria’s agricultural sector which is threatened by the sudden change in  climate. It was pointed out that by the end of the 21st century the average annual temperature is expected to rise by 2-5 degrees Celsius, while the amount of precipitation might decrease by 10% resulting in the desertification of the region. This would have deleterious effects on  local agriculture. 

Most of the Bulgarian population is dependent upon agriculture for their livelihood  but if climate change occurs at such a pace it is believed that approximately 900 million people might have to emigrate. The conference recommended  that the Bulgarian government should act immediately and formulate a national policy to address the problems likely to be caused by climate change.

Declining food production in developing countries   --

The fourth Food Cost Review, featured a report  released by the National Agricultural Marketing Council and the agriculture department. The report focused on the reason for the deficit in South Africa’s food production which is driving up food prices sharply. Global food prices are rising because of increasing consumer spending powers in developing countries, climate change and the demand for grain for biofuels. This has resulted in substantial investments in farming infrastructure such as storage facilities for  grain reserves etc.

Factors such as  availability and quality of water, dwindling  investment, adverse climatic conditions, low profitability because of higher input costs and insufficient research for increasing productivity also contribute to the poor performance of investments in the agriculture sector. The alarming figures provided by the council revealed that total agricultural production increased by only 10 per cent between 1991 and 2007; while the population grew by 32% per cent which means that population growth has outstripped agricultural production. The report visualized the impact of climate change more on developing countries than developed countries.   

Harnessing carbon financing to boost sustainable farming

FAO and the Conservation Technology Information Centre, with the support of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change jointly organised a meeting in Indiana. Over 100 eminent experts from five continents participated in discussions on the best way to harness the immense flow of funding under Kyoto Protocol’s clean development mechanism for agricultural development since the agriculture sector offers huge potential to reduce GHG emissions   and also to improve the lives of poor farmers across the world.

Adoption of No-Till Conservation Agriculture where seeds are drilled directly into the ground through the vegetation cover. was suggested by the experts at the conference. Studies revealed that CA has the potential to remove significant quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it in the soil. Application of no-tillage farming methods can allow up to three billion tonnes of atmospheric carbon to be sequestered every year for 30 years. Moreover a soil rich in carbon content is more productive and healthy and better at storing water. Using CDM funding to promote CA and other SPI systems in developing countries could give a significant boost to development by overcoming the threat of climate change. This is considered to be  a win- win opportunity that will slow down the climate change, improve soil health and productivity and at the same time improve farmers living conditions.

Climate change threatens China's food safety

A report released by Greenpeace has warned China that climate change can reduce China’s overall food production by 23% by 2050. Its agricultural sector is already suffering from the impact of climate change; approximately 50 million hectares of crops are affected adversely every year by the climatic disasters. The report identifies ecologically friendly agriculture as a possible solution to fight the threats of climate change and to feed its population in a sustainable manner.

Rural climate change forum (RCCF) Reappointed

The Rural Climate Change Forum (RCCF) has been reappointed up to March 2011. The Forum will play a vital role in shaping policy and advising government on how agriculture, forestry, and land management  can help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the UK. It was suggested that only a holistic approach adopted in the farming, forestry and land management sector can help achieve the GHGs reduction target of 80% by 2050.