Climate change threat to food production – Don

Sonaiya made the observation while delivering the first Annual Public Lecture of the Animal Science Association of Nigerian/Institute of Animal Science (ASAN/NIAS), Kwara State Chapter, hosted by the University of Ilorin.The don described climate change as “a   growing crisis with grave economic, health, safety and security implications.” He said climate change causes contamination to coastal […]

Sonaiya made the observation while delivering the first Annual Public Lecture of the Animal Science Association of Nigerian/Institute of Animal Science (ASAN/NIAS), Kwara State Chapter, hosted by the University of Ilorin.
The don described climate change as “a   growing crisis with grave economic, health, safety and security implications.”
He said climate change causes contamination to coastal freshwater reserves, increases the risk of catastrophic flooding and aids the pole-ward spread of pests and diseases once limited to the tropics.
In the lecture titled: “Climate Change and Profitable Animal Production,” the lecturer noted that sub-Saharan Africa was particularly hard hit by global warming because of its high temperature and low precipitation, adding that the economies are highly dependent on agriculture and adoption of modern technology is low.
The don maintained that climate change affects livestock directly and indirectly as it influences the quantity and quality of feedstuff.
Explaining that concerns related to heat exchanges between the animal and its environment are linked to air temperature, humidity, wind speed and thermal radiation, Sonaiya noted that increasing global temperatures were due mostly to the effect of green house gasses like Carbon-dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous Oxide (N2O) and Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), maintaining that livestock production is caught in the climate change circle where it contributes to the change and is also affected by the change.
He said: “Climate change, to some degree, is inevitable. This means that the environment in which livestock are managed will change (e.g., temperature changes, grass growth seasons, drought and flood prevalence, duration of housing periods).
“Genetic improvement can be used as a tool to help livestock species adapt to the new environment as well as help to mitigate emissions. Examples include selection for heat tolerance, selection for hardiness traits and selection for efficiency of production levels in future systems. Genotype by environment interaction will also become important in adaptation to climate change so that animals will be suitable for the new production systems that will result from climate change.”
According to him, the outlook for green house gases (GHG) mitigation in animal production showed there is significant potential, adding that current initiatives indicated that synergy between climate change policies, sustainable development and improvement of environmental quality will lead the way forward to realise the mitigation potential in the sector.