Brazil’S Climate Adaptation Policies: Impacts On Agriculture

Current climate adaptation polices in Brazil are influencing not only the choice of crops but also many agricultural practices at the farm level including changes in planting and sowing periods, use of irrigation-saving technologies, and increased nitrogen fertilization, among others. The shape and content of these adaptation policies and measures for Brazil are not limited to production agriculture, but include also conservation reserve and risk-reducing farm programs. In addition, the decades-old adaptation and management strategies for agricultural production under tropical conditions carried out by EMBRAPA, Brazil’s premier agricultural research agency, continue to play a prominent role. As Brazil is one the world’s largest agricultural producers and exporters of agricultural commodities, impacts in Brazil that may occur under different climate scenarios could have broad implications for food supply and prices worldwide. We find that farmers’ adoption of adaptation strategies could result in significant increases in agricultural productivity, changes in suitable crop growing areas, reduced vulnerability to temperature changes, and improved income generation for farmers.