connections between these two processes. On occasions, the climate change-food
security nexus is portrayed in somewhat narrow terms, focusing strictly on the
effects of higher temperature profiles on agricultural production. Yet as this chapter
has sought to present, these issues, although important, are but one element of the
relationship.
In closing, three further issues warrant mention. First is the issue of climate
mitigation and the food system. This chapter has largely steered away from providing an extensive discussion of the potential for climate change scenarios to be
redirected (positively) through mitigation policies and strategies. However, should
global commitment to mitigation become stronger and binding on national governments, it is inevitable that policy-makers will look to the food system for
emission reductions. This can and would take multiple forms including soil carbon
sequestration, revegetation, the more prevalent use of non-fossil fuel-based agricultural inputs and technologies, and possibly, policies to encourage greater
localism in food systems in order to reduce emissions from food miles. There is
considerable research already underway on mitigation strategies within the food
system, notably through Climate-Smart Agriculture programs. Mostly however,
these remain voluntary and on the margins of the food system as a whole.
Mainstreaming of Climate-Smart Agriculture would lead to major shifts in the
composition and character of food production, distribution and consumption.
As part of any set of changes towards a food system with lesser emission
propensities, the introduction of carbon taxes or emission trading arrangement may
place cost pressures on those parts of agriculture with relatively higher emission
levels, such as livestock for meat consumption purposes. As a country with a high
rate of vegetarianism, the Indian food system does not have the high emission
vulnerabilities relating to livestock consumption when compared to countries such
as the US and, increasingly, China. However, higher costs of meat could place
renewed nutritional importance on pulses, a food category that many Indians
depend crucially reliant upon, but which has faced problems of supply in India over
recent years. India increasingly depends on imports to meet its pulse requirements,
and domestic production stocks have led to rapid rises in local prices. In a broader
sense, pulses were displaced from much of Indian agriculture in conjunction with
the adoption of Green Revolution rice and wheat hybrids with more intense
cropping patterns, and perhaps, with a need to adapt the Indian food system to a
more climate resilient future, there is a place for a renewed emphasis on pulses
within Indian farming.
Second, there is the question of how the Indian food system, and farmers in
particular, adapt to climate change. Scenarios of potential climate change migration,
painted above, are contingent (in part at least) on farmers’ adaptive capabilities.
Higher temperatures and altered precipitation patterns will pose challenges for
farmers, and their capacities to adapt will shape their futures. The enhancement of
adaptive capabilities in Indian agriculture faces considerable hurdles. During the
past decade, investment in agricultural extension has lagged requirements. It has
20
B. Pritchard
security nexus is portrayed in somewhat narrow terms, focusing strictly on the
effects of higher temperature profiles on agricultural production. Yet as this chapter
has sought to present, these issues, although important, are but one element of the
relationship.
In closing, three further issues warrant mention. First is the issue of climate
mitigation and the food system. This chapter has largely steered away from providing an extensive discussion of the potential for climate change scenarios to be
redirected (positively) through mitigation policies and strategies. However, should
global commitment to mitigation become stronger and binding on national governments, it is inevitable that policy-makers will look to the food system for
emission reductions. This can and would take multiple forms including soil carbon
sequestration, revegetation, the more prevalent use of non-fossil fuel-based agricultural inputs and technologies, and possibly, policies to encourage greater
localism in food systems in order to reduce emissions from food miles. There is
considerable research already underway on mitigation strategies within the food
system, notably through Climate-Smart Agriculture programs. Mostly however,
these remain voluntary and on the margins of the food system as a whole.
Mainstreaming of Climate-Smart Agriculture would lead to major shifts in the
composition and character of food production, distribution and consumption.
As part of any set of changes towards a food system with lesser emission
propensities, the introduction of carbon taxes or emission trading arrangement may
place cost pressures on those parts of agriculture with relatively higher emission
levels, such as livestock for meat consumption purposes. As a country with a high
rate of vegetarianism, the Indian food system does not have the high emission
vulnerabilities relating to livestock consumption when compared to countries such
as the US and, increasingly, China. However, higher costs of meat could place
renewed nutritional importance on pulses, a food category that many Indians
depend crucially reliant upon, but which has faced problems of supply in India over
recent years. India increasingly depends on imports to meet its pulse requirements,
and domestic production stocks have led to rapid rises in local prices. In a broader
sense, pulses were displaced from much of Indian agriculture in conjunction with
the adoption of Green Revolution rice and wheat hybrids with more intense
cropping patterns, and perhaps, with a need to adapt the Indian food system to a
more climate resilient future, there is a place for a renewed emphasis on pulses
within Indian farming.
Second, there is the question of how the Indian food system, and farmers in
particular, adapt to climate change. Scenarios of potential climate change migration,
painted above, are contingent (in part at least) on farmers’ adaptive capabilities.
Higher temperatures and altered precipitation patterns will pose challenges for
farmers, and their capacities to adapt will shape their futures. The enhancement of
adaptive capabilities in Indian agriculture faces considerable hurdles. During the
past decade, investment in agricultural extension has lagged requirements. It has
20
B. Pritchard