The Financial Times reports that extreme weather events in 2021 triggered spikes in the prices of agricultural commodities, which remained elevated into 2022, as the unusual conditions that damaged crops resulted in ongoing shortages.
The price of goods including Brazilian coffee, Belgian potatoes and Canadian yellow peas — in demand as a protein substitute in plant-based foods — rose sharply last year in response to extreme temperatures and flooding. Scientists have warned that these conditions will become more frequent and intense as climate change accelerates.
“Agriculture is one of the most exposed sectors to climate change,” at risk from both individual extreme weather events and long-term shifts in climatic patterns, said a report by Stockholm Environment Institute. The risks were “many times greater” than the opportunities for the sector, it said.
Scientists have warned that these conditions will become more frequent and intense as climate change accelerates.
