Animal Welfare Activists Express Dismay over COP30’s Silence on Industrial Animal Agriculture
By Solomon Lubambula
Activists have expressed strong concern over the glaring omission of industrial animal agriculture at the 30th Conference of Parties (COP30), warning that continued failure to address the sector’s climate and deforestation impacts undermines global progress.
This comes after delegates at this year’s COP30, held in Belém at the edge of the Amazon rainforest, were expected to confront intensive animal agriculture.
Animal welfare activists at World Animal Protection say that industrial animal agriculture is one of the world’s most urgent yet under-addressed climate drivers. They note that despite the well-documented role of industrial animal agriculture in accelerating deforestation, biodiversity loss, and greenhouse gas emissions, the negotiations at the largest climate change meeting largely avoided the issue.
Sally Kahiu, External Affairs Lead at World Animal Protection, said: “The planet cannot be protected with an industry that destroys forests, fuels the climate crisis, and subjects billions of animals to immense suffering. Cutting down forests to grow crops for billions of intensively farmed animals rather than feeding people makes neither environmental nor economic sense. Ignoring this reality holds back global progress.”
According to a statement issued by World Animal Protection Africa, it is unfortunate that despite being hosted in the Amazon, the conference’s final Belém Political Package weakened earlier pledges to halt deforestation — an alarming rollback at a time when forest loss is accelerating and destabilizing global weather patterns.
The statement further indicates that the impacts of deforestation are being felt across diverse regions of Africa, from prolonged drought cycles in the Horn of Africa to destructive floods in Southern Africa and crop failures in parts of West Africa.
As the world moves toward COP31, activists at World Animal Protection urge all nations to confront the true drivers of deforestation and to build food systems that are humane, equitable, and sustainable.
COP32 in Ethiopia presents a historic opportunity for African solutions to shape the global agenda. Most African countries are already pioneering adaptation and food systems transformation. For instance, Kenya’s agroecology adoption initiatives, Rwanda’s forest restoration efforts, and Ghana’s sustainable land management programs demonstrate that the continent is working on solutions that can be fronted at the Addis COP.
