EnvironmentAn IFPRI model finds that a very strong El Niño, combined with fuel and fertilizer prices driven up by the war in Iran, could cut Kenya's farm output, raise food prices and push about 756,000 more people into poverty under one scenario.
EnvironmentA study in Earth's Future finds about 77% of pantropical forests were hotter and drier than usual during the 2023-24 El Nino, and warns such heat could be normal within 20 years under likely emissions.
CropsUSDA's office in New Delhi now expects India to make 29.5 million tonnes of sugar in 2026-27, down from 33.6 million, as a rainfall deficit, waterlogging and red borer cut cane yields and sugar recovery.
EnvironmentAfter a snow drought, the North Platte's main irrigation reservoirs hold about 270,000 acre-feet less water than a year ago; DTN's long-range forecast leans towards above-normal precipitation into early 2027 with the strong El Niño.
LivestockILRI researchers argue that forecasts protect pastoralists only when they trigger early support, pointing to index-based livestock insurance and the KAZNET crowdsourcing platform as tools to act before El Niño floods and disease take hold.
EnvironmentThe World Meteorological Organization's seasonal update forecasts record sea-surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific by December, above-average heat across much of the world and below-normal October-December rainfall over the Indian subcontinent.
LivestockWith El Niño expected to bring below-normal rainfall and heat to South Africa's 2026/27 summer, livestock advisers urge farmers to match breeding to grazing, check bull fertility and body condition, and vaccinate well before mating.
EnvironmentMeteorologists say average winter temperatures may run above normal and cold waves may be brief; with less rain, fog may thicken, and irrigation demand may rise in the boro season.
CropsThe Reserve Bank of India's October Monetary Policy Report says monsoon rain ended 12.6% below normal and reservoirs are at 71.8% of capacity, but finds the rural economy less dependent on rainfall than before.
CropsAgbiz expects no major cut in South Africa's 4.6 million hectares of summer crops despite a strong El Nino and higher fertiliser and fuel costs, after a record maize harvest.
FAO's satellite-based Agricultural Stress Index System flagged Cambodia as at high risk of severe drought this El Niño, and a FAO project now sends more than 4,000 farmers forecasts with practical advice by phone.
EnvironmentSea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific reached 3.08 degrees Celsius above the 1991 to 2020 average on 21 September, the most extreme daily reading for any El Nino on record.
In an AgriBusiness Global column, EarthDaily's Andres Umana writes that insurers face a surge of demand just as losses are expected, and are capping exposure, tightening cut-off dates and turning to satellite data.
