Today (25th June) we’ve released a new report exposing the toll of climate crisis-linked extreme weather events on farmed animals, farmers’ livelihoods and food.

A global problem

Climate Doom Loop: Factory farming’s toll on animals, farmers and food examines eleven case studies – a snapshot of the full picture – from the past decade, in which 14.8 million farmed animals were killed, and 56.4 million people impacted, at an estimated global cost of $120 billion. 

From heatwaves here in the UK to hurricanes in the US, flooding in Italy and Brazil and other extreme weather events across Europe, Asia and Africa, the report spotlights the suffering of farmed animals due to extreme weather events. Many are trapped in cages, left to drown in floods and suffocate in heatwaves when these disasters strike.

The report explores the impacts on farmed animals across the world.

Vietnam, 2024:  Over 5 million poultry, 44,000 cattle and thousands of pigs were killed by a typhoon. 
USA, 2024: An estimated 2-5 million chickens were killed by Hurricane Helene. 
Italy, 2023: Witnesses saw ‘piles of hundreds of dead pigs’, alongside other animals swimming for their lives, following flooding in Emilia-Romagna, the Italian region famous for Parma ham and Parmigiano cheese.  
France, 2023: 750,000 poultry died of suffocation and exhaustion during extreme heatwaves.

Timely Release

Food systems are responsible for a third of total global greenhouse gas emissions. The livestock sector – dominated by factory farming – produces more direct greenhouse gas emissions than all the world’s planes, trains and cars combined.

We’ve released our report as governments meet at the Bonn Climate Conference to shape the agenda for COP30 and ultimately influence whether industrial animal agriculture continues to be propped up by subsidies or phased out.  

Urgent action needed

To break the destructive loop, governments are being urged to substantially reduce livestock production, switch to more climate and nature-friendly farming practices, and ensure our food system aligns with planetary boundaries.

Anthony Field, Head of our UK Office, said:

Millions of farmed animals are killed each year by floods, storms and heatwaves driven by climate change, yet the very system they are reared in is making the situation worse. These increasingly common extreme weather events are also catastrophic for people, food security and farmers’ livelihoods. Simply put, we’re trapped in a doom loop. 

Governments must take urgent action to reduce emissions and livestock production as well as meat consumption in richer countries, whilst also establishing proper plans for climate resilience. Farmers must move away from cruel, unsustainable factory farming and towards responsible climate- and nature-friendly practices, before it’s too late.

Climate Doom Loop: Factory farming’s toll on animals, farmers & food security