The escalation of extreme heat episodes is pushing agriculture “to the limit” worldwide and threatening the health and livelihoods of more than one billion people, according to a joint report published on Wednesday by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The document, titled “Extreme Heat and Agriculture,” warns that the phenomenon causes the annual loss of 500 billion working hours in the sector.

With more severe heat likely in the coming years and another El Niño poised to test unprepared systems, the priority is to move from crisis response to heat readiness

Severe heatwaves in commonly hot regions could leave farmers unable to work outside, with livestock mortality rates expected to rise