Extreme heat is stressing cows, putting global dairy supply in danger
Heat and drought are inflicting perilous strain on dairy cows across the globe, drying up their milk production and threatening the long-term global supply of everything from butter to baby formula.
Volumes of dairy are forecast to sink by nearly half a million metric tonnes in 2022 in major exporter Australia, as farmers exit the industry after years of pressure from heatwaves.
In India, small-scale farmers are contemplating investing in cooling equipment they will have to stretch to afford.
Producers in France have had to pause making one type of high-quality cheese when parched fields left grass-fed cows with nowhere to graze.
Some of the world’s biggest milk-making regions are becoming less hospitable to these animals due to extreme weather brought on by climate change.
Cows do not yield as much milk under the stress of scorching temperatures, and arid conditions and storms compound the problem by withering or destroying the grass and other crops they eat.
In the United States alone, some scientists estimate climate change will cost the dairy industry US$2.2 billion (S$3.1 billion) a year by the end of the century, a financial hit not easily shouldered by a sector that already struggles to make money.
If greenhouse gas emissions remain high, one study estimates that the dairy and meat industries will lose US$39.94 billion per year to heat stress by that same date.
At the same time, a swelling middle class in many developing nations is adding to demand for dairy items, while policies aimed at helping the environment are discouraging farmers in some areas from expanding their production.
That collision portends higher prices and potential shortages of grocery-list staples such as cream cheese or yogurt.
“Climate change adds to the volatility or the variation in your supply, and the knock-on effect to that can be increased food insecurity,” said Mary Ledman, global dairy strategist at Rabobank.