Agriculture majors are in a state of panic over the impact of climate change on crop yields and farmers are being forced to take drastic measures to stay afloat.
According to a new report, many Canadian farmers have had to take extreme measures to adapt to the changing climate.
The Agricultural and Food Systems Institute at Dalhousie University says there is a growing number of farmers who are considering planting more crops on less land to help mitigate the effects of climate-change impacts.
The report says it is important to recognize the benefits of diversifying agricultural production while avoiding the worst impacts.
The institute says climate change is one of the biggest challenges for farmers in Canada.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives estimates Canada’s agriculture sector produces about 3.5 billion tonnes of food annually and consumes about 10 per cent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions.
The report says many Canadians are reluctant to acknowledge the challenges they face due to climate change denial.
“It’s a very different conversation for a farmer who’s talking about climate change than a farmer trying to talk about drought or a farmer talking about how they can’t grow crops in their area,” said David MacLeod, co-author of the report and a member of the Canadian College of Agriculture.
The Institute says the main obstacle is farmers don’t have the skills to cope with the climate changes.
It recommends that agri-food and agriculture departments should develop strategies and implement a process for identifying and engaging in dialogue on climate change impacts.