Journal of Agriculture and Food Research (Dec 2022)
Impact of climate change on crop production and food security in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Abstract
Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), the easternmost province of Atlantic Canada, has a food security issue caused by shortage of agri-foods produced in the province. This is due to short supply of suitable agricultural land, short growing seasons, a limited range of agricultural produce (industrial or mono cropping) farmed on existing farms and few facilities for secondary processing. The food security issue has been exacerbated in the last decades by climate change (extreme temperatures, heavy rains and more frequent droughts) which has impacted the province's agricultural industry. This research investigates the impact of climate change on crops and food security in the NL province and identifies the measures taken by the provincial farmers to reduce the GHG emissions and aims to assess whether agro-ecological practices could be expanded in the NL province. It is based on quantitative and qualitative data, collected through surveying a sample of NL crop farmers and through a literature review of peer-reviewed articles, published government reports and documents and news articles. The research results show that any attempt to solve the multi-faceted problems of the NL agri-foods sector impacted by climate change should involve policies supporting an agro-ecological approach to farming in the province. Generalizing agro-ecological farming practices on highly integrated and diversified farms (small, medium and large) is one sustainable alternative that can potentially eliminate the negative consequences of modern industrial farming, make the farming sector more resilient to global climate change and enhance food security in the province. The research results show that there are incipient agro-ecological practices in the province, that farmers are aware of climate change and the need to adopt more environmentally friendly farming practices. New policy frameworks and work plans are needed to speed up the transition from the current unsustainable farming practices to a more resilient agro-ecological-food system.
