How are livestock and the environment connected?
Context matters; properly tailored for specific communities and environments, livestock practices serve both.
Environment
Healthy, well-cared-for livestock contribute to improved environmental health.
Help small-scale livestock keepers adapt to, as well as mitigate, climate change
More sustainable livestock sectors present huge opportunities to help communities adapt to climate change while at the same time lowering their greenhouse gas emissions.
Enhance small-scale livestock systems to help mitigate climate change
Improving smallholder livestock productivity also reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Promote integrated agricultural solutions for optimal use of land and water resources
The land, feed and water requirements of livestock do not need to compete with the food needs of people.
Use livestock systems to manage land, water and biodiversity resources sustainably
Livestock can be managed to enhance rather than harm the environment.
About one-third of the world’s food supply is produced by small, mostly family-run farms.
These farms integrate livestock with crops in regenerative and circular agricultural systems.
