Summary
This chapter reviews economic sector studies of climate change impacts on United States agriculture, identifying critical methodological gaps in earlier work. The authors argue that previous analyses likely overstate potential losses by excluding heat-tolerant crops (cotton, sorghum, fruits, vegetables) in southern regions and neglecting direct climate effects on livestock performance and farm-level adaptive responses such as modified input use. The paper sets an agenda for more comprehensive economic assessment that incorporates regional crop diversity and farmer adaptation capacity.
Regional applicability
This United States-focused analysis has limited direct applicability to United Kingdom farming, which operates under different climate zones, crop profiles, and regulatory frameworks. However, the methodological critique regarding the importance of including regional crop diversity and farm adaptation capacity in climate impact assessments is globally relevant and applicable to UK agriculture policy and research.
Key measures
Regional economic losses and gains across crop and livestock sectors; farm-level adaptation through input substitution (fertiliser, irrigation)
Outcomes reported
The study assesses economic effects of climate change on US agriculture, identifying that previous analyses have underestimated regional resilience by omitting heat-tolerant crops and overlooking direct livestock impacts and farm-level adaptation strategies such as input substitution.
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