Climate | IATP

EU can build on existing agriculture emissions targets to unlock the sector’s climate potential

A warming planet and more frequent extreme weather events will change how food is produced in the European Union (EU) in 2040 and beyond. But what about the sector’s contribution to fighting the climate crisis?

Agroecology Uprooted Episode Four: Food and Power

Food is about more than just the calories we need to survive. The expansion of corporate-controlled industrial agriculture has meant the loss of traditional knowledge, diverse genetic resources, and communities’ power to control their own food systems. 

One step forward, two steps back for conservation

IRA freeze and DOGE cuts limit farmer access to popular conservation programs. The on-farm conservation programs EQIP and CSP provide vital support for farmers to increase resilience and improve environmental outcomes on their farms. But following federal cuts to USDA funding and staffing, program acceptance rates dropped off steeply in fiscal year 2025. Learn more in our latest report.

IATP Europe comments on use of international carbon credits to meet EU 2040 climate target

In April, IATP Europe submitted feedback to the European Commission on the plan introduced by the Commission in December 2025 to apply international carbon credits toward the EU's 2040 climate target. The Commission is currently in the process of building a legislative framework for the purchase of international credits, which is expected to be published by the end of this year.

Headwinds for factory farm biogas open doors for better alternatives

In April, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it would stop providing loan guarantees for methane biodigester projects on large animal operations for the rest of 2026. While the USDA’s concerns were financial, given the questionable climate benefits and other environmental concerns, pausing loans for biodigesters is a step in the right direction.

IATP Europe gives feedback on the EU Livestock Strategy

In April, IATP Europe submitted feedback on the European Union's upcoming Livestock Strategy, outlining the changes needed to support Europe's farmers, farm workers, and rural communities in a fair, just transition to climate neutrality.

IATP Europe gives feedback on EU framework for national 2040 climate targets

This month, IATP Europe submitted feedback on the European Union's framework for its 2040 national climate targets, encouraging the European Commission to build an agriculture-specific greenhouse gas (GHG) emission target and support policy frameworks that help farmers and consumers transition away from high-emitting industrial livestock systems.

Scientists say 'business as usual' no longer an option for EU’s food and farm systems

The European Union has adopted its target for cutting climate pollution by 2040 and is now working on the policies needed to achieve it. Its climate advisors have just published a major report on agriculture with a clear message for the sector: business as usual is not an option if Europe wants to ensure a better future for its farmers and rural communities, and, frankly, everyone else.

Innovation meets system reform: why methane tech fixes won’t deliver on their own

As limited climate gains from technical methane interventions are outpaced by growth in livestock production and associated emissions, we need to reframe technical interventions as complementary tools, not substitutes, for systemic reform.

EU bets on voluntary action to reduce agricultural emissions, but who’s buying it?

The European Commission has spent the last few years exploring policy options for putting a price on agricultural greenhouse gas emissions in their efforts to meet the EU's new 2040 climate target. Today, much of this work has been shelved and it looks like the only instrument that could be adopted to drive climate action in agriculture will be a voluntary credit system.