When it comes to water, in northeast Brazil there are two types of people: the haves and have nots. Nowhere is this clearer than in Pernambuco state. Pictures: Marcus Perkins / Tearfund

A freak tornado and floods last month may be a harbinger of a troubled future for Brazilian farmers, who worry that climate change could severely disrupt production in one of the world’s breadbaskets. Rising temperatures, a shift in seasons, and extreme weather in coming decades are likely to cut output in some areas and wipe out crops entirely in others, experts say. “Brazil is vulnerable. If we don’t do anything, food production is at risk,” says Eduardo Assad, an agronomist at the government’s agriculture research institute, Embrapa. … There are signs their predictions may be coming true, with last month’s unusual tornado becoming the latest example of bad weather to destroy crops and houses in the country’s south. “We’re seeing the beginning of climate change. The frequency and intensity of rains changed measurably and will continue to do so,” says Jose Marengo, an INPE climate expert. In Varginha, in central Minas Gerais state, Ivo Bueno Paiva points to his infested and depleted coffee trees. In five of the past 10 years, rainfall was well below the historic average, shriveling leaves and drying out flower buds. Thousands of small coffee farmers, already struggling with rising costs and low prices, lost money and racked up debt. “The more the rains change, the more my debt rises,” says 76-year old Paiva, who was dressed in soiled trousers and a tattered shirt. …

Climate change threatens Brazil’s agriculture via The Oil Drum