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🗞️ Driving the news: The International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, is under scrutiny for financing industrial livestock operations, including pig farming tower blocks in China, with more than $1.6 billion invested in such projects between 2017 and 2023

🔭 The context: Critics, including environmental and animal welfare groups, argue this funding contradicts the World Bank's commitments to addressing the climate crisis and promoting sustainable development
• The financing includes a $47.3 million loan to a Chinese company for constructing multistorey pig-rearing complexes, known as “hog hotels.”

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: The expansion of industrial livestock production is criticized for its detrimental impacts on climate, sustainability, and food security
• Such practices not only require significant resources but also contribute to increased meat consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, posing a threat to the planet's health

⏭️ What's next: A coalition of environmental and animal welfare organizations plans to address a letter to the World Bank's president at the bank's spring meeting, urging the phase-out of financing for industrial farming due to its contribution to climate change and biodiversity loss

💬 One quote: “Expanding industrial livestock production is a threat to climate, sustainable development and food security,” said Kelly McNamara, senior research and policy analyst at Friends of the Earth US.

📈 One stat: Over $1.6 billion was provided for industrial farming projects by the IFC between 2017 and 2023.

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