Climate Threat Global Challenges

Report: Climate Change Is Destroying EU Agriculture

The EU's agricultural sector is losing €28.3 billion each year due to extreme weather events caused by climate change, writes Reuters, citing an analysis supported by the EU.

The losses represent six percent of the EU's annual crop and livestock production, but only 20-30 percent of farmers' climate-related losses were covered by public or private insurance, according to the report.

"We must do something to cover the remaining losses," said EU Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen.

He is urging countries to use their EU agricultural support to address the climate crisis.

Extreme weather costs farmers hundreds of billions

The EU's agricultural sector is losing an average of more than SEK 300 billion due to extreme weather events caused by climate change. The figure comes from a new study supported by the European Commission and the European Investment Bank.

According to the report, only 20-30 percent of what farmers lose due to extreme weather is covered by insurance.

"We need to do something to cover the remaining losses," said EU agriculture chief Christophe Hansen, according to Reuters.