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Trapped in a Climate Doom Loop - Cases from around the world

From heatwaves in Europe and hurricanes in the US to floods in Brazil, every climate disaster highlights just how fragile our food system is. Animal farming – dominated by factory farming – is a major contributor to the climate crisis. Our research reveals the hidden costs of worldwide climate disasters.

Join END.IT: sign the petition demanding world leaders urgently draw up a food and farming plan that protects animals, people, and the planet.

Chicken confined in a cage with beak wide open, showing visible signs of heat stress

United Kingdom

Human-caused climate change caused mass farmed animal deaths

“Millions of factory farmed chickens died during the record-breaking heatwave as industry whistle-blowers claimed little was done to protect them from the lethal temperatures. The birds – confined to industrial farm sheds – suffered in temperatures of up to 45°C and died slowly of heat exhaustion.”

Reporters, Anna Isaac, Jane Dalton | The Independent newspaper, UK

In the summer of 2022, the UK experienced five separate heatwave periods, with the hottest day ever recorded on 19 July, when temperatures reached 40.3°C. Factory farmed animals were severely impacted. The UK Government refused to publish the total number but confirmed mass fatalities. A news report stated that many birds were panting and flapping as they died. A worker described the scene as “carnage”.

Image credit: Shatabdi Chakrabarti / FIAPO / We Animals

Emaciated cow stranded in the aftermath of a flooded field

Brazil

Afrontar los ríos revueltos del cambio climático

As one of the main producers of livestock and crops for animal feed, such as soy and corn, Brazil plays a leading role in the global food system.

In early 2024, extreme flooding in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul left a trail of devastation, displacing communities, destroying infrastructure, and leading to the death of over a million farmed animals. The floods severely disrupted food production and rural livelihoods, highlighting the fragility of intensive agricultural systems in the face of escalating climate impacts.

As Brazil continues to expand industrial livestock and feed production, this case underscores the urgent need to shift away from intensive animal farming and towards a more resilient food system - one that can withstand climate shocks while protecting people, animals, and the environment.

“There has been an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme [weather] events in Rio Grande do Sul over the last two decades, and especially in the last five years. It’s likely to increase due to climate change.”

Francisco Aquino, climatologist, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Financial Times

Image credit: Emater / RS-Ascar

Activists holding a sign that reads 'Climate Emergency'

France

Climate crisis triggers animal deaths, drought and fires

In 2022, three extreme heat waves hit France with temperatures exceeding 40°C in June, July and August. It was the second hottest French summer since the beginning of the 20th century.

On 18 July , when the temperature reached 37.6°C, an estimated 750,000 animals died on 126 farms in Brittany. The animals died of suffocation and exhaustion. 83% of broiler chickens (chickens reared for meat production) in France do not have outdoor access and so can’t express natural cooling behaviours, like flapping their wings. The number of animal deaths is currently not recorded by the government.

The impact on farmers included financial losses and mental health issues. A coalition of breeders appealed to the government to compensate farmers who had lost between 2-4 billion euros, however, livestock mortality is not covered by government aid and the government faced criticism for not sufficiently supporting farmers.

Image credit: Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals

It's time for world leaders to deliver a food and farming transition that protects animals, people, and our planet.

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Aerial view of factory farming sheds surrounded by flood waters

United States 

Five million chicken deaths expose climate vulnerability

“We never expected anything like this in a lifetime. I’ve lost US$2m worth of value and a $400,000 a year income. It’s totally gone. I’ve lost my all.”

Vann Wooten, Georgia poultry farmer, WTOC

In September 2024, Hurricane Helene struck the east coast of America. With winds of over 140 miles per hour, it was the most powerful hurricane ever to strike Florida’s Big Bend region. More than 230 people were killed and 2 million were left without power. The storm displaced more than 375,000 people, causing an estimated $78 billion in damage.

More than six million acres of agricultural lands were affected by Hurricane Helene with an estimated 96,871 farms in the region. Trees were uprooted, sand and sediment were deposited onto farmlands, damaging soil microbiology. There were significant agricultural losses, particularly in Georgia. Estimates suggest $5.5 billion in damages.

Georgia is the country’s biggest chicken-producing state, slaughtering 1.3 billion chickens annually. According to local reports, Helene destroyed at least 165 poultry houses, causing damage to another 500. With approximately 30,000 birds in each unit, this equates to an estimated five million birds killed in just one state.

Image credit: Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals

A pig foams at the mouth inside a crowded transport truck while in transit to a slaughterhouse during summer heat.

Poland

Killer heat wave highlights factory farming weaknesses 

In the summer of 2023, Poland experienced an intense heat wave. This was part of a series of extreme temperature events across Europe attributed to climate change which caused more than 47,000 deaths across the continent. The Polish Government Security Centre issued heat warnings with Legionowo, near Warsaw, recording 35.5°C in August.

Animal farming in Poland, dominated by industrial scale operations, is significantly impacted by climate change, implying a “notable risk in animal welfare”. Impacts on the farmer include reduced production. The repeated drought led to reduced access to both water and feed, resulting in lower production levels - maize production decreased by 39% in 2006 and 2015.

Maintaining appropriate temperatures in industrial animal agriculture is a significant issue. In July 2023, 1,000 pigs on a farm in Bydgoszcz, central Poland, died when the ventilation system failed. The pigs suffocated after an error in the system meant that oxygen was not filtered into the unit, and the intense heat placed extra strain on the cooling system.

Farmer Hanna Szypryt told Tygodnik Poradnik Rolniczy: “On the evening of 10 July, I closed the pigsty and made my rounds. I always pay attention to the following: electricity, air conditioning, ventilation, the most important elements. We turned on the alarms and went to sleep. What I saw when I opened the pigsty in the morning was shocking. I wouldn't wish such sights on anyone. All our effort, all our work, was ruined.” The farmers' insurance did not cover the losses, so the local community launched a donation appeal to help the farm.

Image credit: Human Cruelties / We Animals

Thousands of young chickens packed inside a dimly lit factory farm unit

Czechia

Extreme heat causes mass animal mortality on factory farms

The Czech Republic has seen an increased occurrence and intensity of heat waves, particularly over the last decade.

Heat stress is common in factory farmed animals due to their rapid growth and production levels. High temperatures above 25°C cause significant physiological stress for dairy cows and during summer, they can suffer for ten hours daily.

Czechia has seen repeated incidents of large-scale farmed animal deaths during periods of extreme heat. In the summer of 2015, more than 70,000 poultry died. 15,000 broilers died in Ústí nad Labem, after a falling tree interrupted the electricity supply. In 2017, ventilation failures caused 100,000 chickens to die across 11 farms. 2018 saw 30,000 poultry deaths from overheating. In 2019, 1,800 pigs died from suffocation when the power in the unit failed, and 25,000 chickens across five farms died from heat stress.

Image credit: Lukas Vincour / Zvírata Nejíme / We Animals

Pigs stand belly-deep as flood water infiltrates enclosure of factory farm

Italy 

Factory farmed animals left to die in flood disaster

In May 2023, the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy experienced unprecedented rain that led to severe flooding and landslides. Research suggests that the region’s flood risk is changing due to climate change and uncontrolled urbanisation. Italy is one of Europe’s climate risk hotspots.

Emilia-Romagna is a major animal farming region, producing Parmigiano cheese and Parma ham. The flooding had a severe impact on farmed animals, the majority of which are confined in factory farms. Units were abandoned by evacuated workers, the animals were trapped in cages and sheds as water levels rose, or were crushed by landslides. More than 5,000 farms were submerged in water and approximately 250,000 cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs, along with around 400 poultry farms and 45,000 beehives were impacted.

In San Lorenzo, more than 60,000 hens died as the sheds flooded. In Bertinoro, as witnessed by animal protection organisation Essere Animali, an industrial unit holding thousands of pigs was flooded - witnesses saw piles of hundreds of dead pigs. At another in Bagnacavallo, pigs were swimming inside and outside the pens.

Image credit: Stefano Belacchi / Essere Animali / We Animals

Pigs lying on a dirty floor in a dim, confined space, with a countryside mural on the wall behind them.

Netherlands

Dutch farming system fails farmed animals in unprecedented heat

"We immediately went to see what was going on, but when we got to the barn, lots of the pigs were already dead. I saw many die. It was terrible, very emotional. We are completely devastated. It is only now sinking in what has happened." – Pig farmer, Peter van der Linden

In the summer of 2019, the Netherlands experienced three heat wave periods, with July reaching unprecedented temperatures of 40.7°C, breaking the heat record by more than 2°C. The KNMI issued a Code Orange warning for the entire country.

The heat contributed to 400 excess deaths, the majority of which were among the elderly. The extreme weather in Europe was the world’s deadliest extreme event in 2019 with 2,500 deaths caused across the region.

The Netherlands has one of the highest densities of livestock in Europe, and has been striving to reduce livestock numbers. Yet, whilst animal death numbers aren’t monitored, the heat wave led to significant livestock fatalities due to failures in ventilation systems within factory farms. Wakker Dier states that summer heat cost the lives of an estimated 163,000 animals. At least 500 chickens also died during transportation in a Dutch poultry carrier on route to Poland – they were not provided with water. In Maarheeze, 2,100 pigs suffocated when a power failure stopped the ventilation.

Image credit: Sabine Grootendorst / HIDDEN / We Animals

We’re building a global movement of citizens and organisations calling on world leaders to transform the way we produce and consume food.

Together, we can take urgent climate action and create a sustainable food system that benefits animals, people and our planet.

Will you be part of the solution?

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Hand holds a spoiled crop of corn in front of destroyed harvest

Nigeria

Suffering critical climate change consequences

“They just continue drinking water, and when the heat persists, they refuse to drink water due to the hotness of the water. The birds begin panting… and raise their wings to conserve air…but that does not solve the problem.”

Mojeed Iyiola, Chair, Lagos State Chapter of the Poultry Association of Nigeria

Nigeria is experiencing many periods of extreme heat. In February 2024, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency issued urgent warnings of a prolonged heat wave with temperatures up to 44.8°C. Climate change, coupled with increased intensive farming in the country, also means farmed animal deaths from heat stress are expected to rise. Fifty four percent of poultry are confined to intensive or semi-intensive systems.

During April 2024, more than 500,000 bird deaths from heat stress were reported in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria. However, the true number was most likely far higher.

Agriculture, which is 21% of the country’s GDP, is predominantly rain-fed so it is devastated by heat and drought. An estimated 17 million people are critically food insecure and maize shortages are threatening the poultry industry.

Image credit: iStock

Read more cases from around the globe in full report

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Image credit: Renata Valdivia/ We Animals

Header image credits: Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals | Kelly Guerin / We Animals | Human Cruelties / We Animals | Jo-Anne McArthur / Sibanye Trust / We Animals | Renata Valdivia/ We Animals | Stefano Belacchi / Essere Animali / We Animals | Lukas Vincour / Zvířata Nejíme / We Animals