The Climate Investment Case for the Livestock Sector

Key Messages• Livestock are vital for nutrition, food security, and livelihoods in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), but climate change threatens these benefits.• The livestock sector also presents an environmental challenge, contributing an estimated 12% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.• With increasing global demand for animal products, there is likely to be an increase in the GHG footprint of the livestock sector.• Sustainably increasing livestock productivity is crucial to balance livelihood support and emissions reduction goals.• Investing in livestock can reduce greenhouse gas emissions while alleviating poverty, improving nutrition, and building climate resilience.• Additional measures, supported by investments, are needed to abate emissions and increase carbon capture.• Climate finance could support the shift towards sustainability, but investments to date have been limited.• The brief identifies several barriers facing financing institutions wishing to invest in livestock and sets out potential solutions.• There is a narrowing window to shape the nature of the sector’s growth and therefore its environmental impact in emerging markets.• Strategic sector investments are needed to target high-quality growth, reduce emissions, and address climate impacts on the livestock sector.