Extreme weather, harmful chemicals escalating health risks among food workers, finds global report

Climate change is exposing food workers to intensifying health and safety risks, from extreme heat and toxic wildfire smoke to hazardous pesticide exposure, even as poverty wages and inadequate labour protections leave many unable to protect themselves, a new global report by the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food), has found.

The report, released on October 5, says that nearly 1.4 billion people work across the global food system, but 30% (about 416 million people) earn below a living wage. It identifies climate change, corporate concentration, and widespread informal employment as forces deepening the exploitation of workers who grow, process, transport, sell and serve food.