Crop Production

Developing climate resilience in crop production

Climate change is already affecting crop production worldwide, with changing temperatures, drought, flooding, extreme weather events and shifting pest and disease pressures affecting agricultural productivity, food security and rural livelihoods.

Climate Bonds Initiative is developing the Crop Production Criteria under the Climate Bonds Resilience Taxonomy (CBRT) to define what constitutes a climate-resilient investment in crop production and provide a science-based basis for certification of investments that strengthen the resilience of agricultural production systems to climate change.
 

Why crop production?

Crop production is one of the sectors most exposed to climate change. Changing temperatures, drought, flooding, extreme weather events and shifting pest and disease pressures are already affecting agricultural productivity, food security and rural livelihoods.

At the same time, agriculture is essential for global food security, rural livelihoods, economic resilience and sustainable development. The Crop Production Criteria aim to provide investors with greater confidence that aligned investments can strengthen the resilience of crop production systems to current and future climate risks.

What are the Crop Production Criteria?

The Crop Production Criteria will consider investments that strengthen resilience across crop production systems.

The Criteria are expected to address resilience to a range of climate-related hazards, including:

• Changing temperatures and heat stress
• Drought and water scarcity
• Extreme events and flooding
• Climate variability and atmospheric changes
• Pests, weeds and diseases
• Multiple and interacting hazards

Resilience measures

• The Criteria will consider a range of measures that can strengthen the long-term resilience of crop production, including:
• Climate services and early warning systems
• Resilient crop varieties
• Water management
• Conservation agriculture
• Agroecological approaches
• Diversification
• Other interventions that strengthen long-term resilience 
• The development will also consider wider impacts, including avoiding maladaptation and applying Do No Significant Harm (DNSH) principles to environmental and social aspects.
   

Technical Working Group

The Crop Production Criteria are being developed with support from an international Technical Working Group (TWG) comprising experts from academia, international organisations, research institutes and climate adaptation specialists from around the world.

The TWG will provide independent scientific and technical expertise throughout the Criteria development process.

India regionalisation

India has been selected as the first regional implementation of the Crop Production Criteria. An India Technical Working Group (India Subgroup) is being established to support the regionalisation of the Criteria for the Indian context.

The India Subgroup will contribute to the global Criteria development while undertaking additional technical work focused on climate risks and implementation considerations relevant to Indian agriculture.

Developing the Criteria

The Crop Production Criteria are currently under development. Stakeholders will have the opportunity to provide feedback as the Criteria progress towards consultation.