Agriculture is not receiving the required finance to meet its climate goals, according to professor of sustainable energy Jim Skea, a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The Imperial College London climate expert said that while there are funding “gaps” across all sectors, globally, the farm, forestry and land use sector is faring worst.

Speaking at the EPA’s annual conference, Prof Skea said it is a challenge to secure funding for agricultural climate measures and get it to the farmer required to make the investment.

Finance companies

“The big finance companies that won’t get out of bed for less than $100m basically find it difficult to deal with smaller projects.

“There is enough money in the world to address climate change.

“The problem is channelling the money into the right places, under the right set of structures,” he said.

Prof Skea suggested that investment in renewables is improving.

“The gaps are actually lowest for renewable energy where costs have fallen considerably and private investment flows have started to move,” he added.