Dairy producers and processors must up their response to weather-related risks and build the resilience of their milk pools, a new report by Asda has urged.
The introduction of UK Climate-related Financial Disclosure legislation (so-called TCFD) in January 2021, requires large businesses to report on any risks posed by climate change that have a material impact on the value of the company and its assets.
Many corporate businesses are already starting to report on their risks. However, Asda wanted to look deeper into its supply chain and apply the framework of climate-related risk assessment at a dairy farm level.
Its new report, produced with Kite Consulting, found that the climate conversation within agriculture was too focused “on the work we are doing, as an industry, to reduce carbon emissions associated with food production”.
And as a result, more weight should be given to the resilience of supply as UK food production becomes increasingly vulnerable to weather shocks, the report stressed.
It laid out several key priority areas, including managing temperature stress in herds, monitoring disease threats, adapting to variable growing and grazing conditions, and coping with any logistical challenges the weather may present.
“Knowing how a changing climate might impact a dairy business and what can be done to manage it will be fundamental to producing milk successfully,” it warned.
“For a long time, agriculture has been under the microscope when it comes to its contribution towards climate change, but it’s time to expand the conversation to include an understanding of the risks climate change poses to food production,” said report author and head of susainability at Kite Consulting, Hayley Campbell Gibbons.
“The report highlights the importance of understanding weather related risks and impacts across all aspects of a dairy farm business and identifies ways to build resilience on-farm,” she added.
“Knowing how a changing climate might impact a dairy farm business, and what can be done to manage it will be fundamental to producing milk successfully in the future.”
Milk processors should also be assessing the resilience of their milk pools, as well as their own operations, in the face of climate change in the medium and long term, she urged.
“Understanding climate risk on food production is an increasingly important issue for business,” said Asda senior director of farming Chris Brown.
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