Investment in agricultural innovation is vital to combatting increased food prices, food shortages and declining agricultural production predicted to result from climate change and which could lead to widespread hunger and malnutrition.

An article on the website of Thomson Reuters Foundation looks at the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which warns of the possibility of a climate-induced future food crisis.

We need to invest now, says Frank Rijsberman, CEO of the CGIAR. “Some of the most effective ways to deal with climate change, such as adapting crop varieties and livestock to the new conditions, take a full 20 years to develop.”

He outlines research already underway by the CGIAR on drought-tolerant maize for farmers in southern Africa and flood-tolerant rice for Asia.

Protecting the genetic diversity of plants, livestock, trees and fish is also needed if we are to find the best varieties to produce in a changing climate, and this is being done through a worldwide network of gene banks.

Better farming practices are a focus of the CGIAR, such as the integration of trees into crop and livestock systems through EverGreen Agriculture. Fertilizer trees, that improve soil fertility and increase food production, are also providing fodder, fuel, medicine, fiber and income. Evergreen Agriculture is helping millions of smallholder farmers across Africa protect themselves against drought and hunger while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“We need to integrate how the agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors work within the broader landscape in which they produce food,” says Rijsberman, and “innovation in policy and institutions are equally important.”

He outlines how prices of food and natural resources need to reflect the costs to the environment and climate. There is also scope to revise carbon credits to motivate smallholder farmers adopt sustainable farming practices.

Rijsberman is confident that it is possible to address food demands in the face of climate change if this ‘wake-up call’ is taken as urgent and serious and we further invest in research for a smarter agriculture to drive development.

Read the full story: Is more hunger and malnutrition inevitable? Not necessarily