Low-carbon farms can raise food output, food agency says

BARCELONA, Spain (Reuters) - Low-carbon farming can both curb climate change and boost food output in developing nations and so must be rewarded under a global climate deal due in December, the U.N.'s food agency said on Thursday.

Steps to cut carbon emissions on farms in developing countries could also boost yields where food is shortest, the Food and Agriculture Organization said in a report published on Thursday.

More than 1 billion people are undernourished now and the world will have to feed an additional 3 billion by 2050, many in areas expected to be worst afflicted by climate change, experts say.

Certain farm practices can tackle both problems, for example conserving over-grazed pastures and caring for soils, but they involve up-front costs.

"A key part of the problem is a lack of financing," said Leslie Lipper, FAO economist and co-author of its report "Food Security and Agricultural Mitigation in Developing Countries," published on the sidelines of U.N. climate talks in Barcelona.

"If adopted by farmers, many of these practices make them better off, but in the short run they may face reduced income," Lipper said, using the example of removing cattle to allow grasslands to recover.

Agriculture has barely been mentioned in the November 2-6 Barcelona talks -- the final preparatory session before a meeting in Copenhagen in December meant to agree a global climate deal to replace or extend the Kyoto Protocol.

Farms accounts for 10-12 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions directly, not including their contribution to deforestation, according to a U.N. panel of climate scientists.

An FAO study this year put the extra farm investment needed to boost food yields at $210 billion between now and 2050.