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Extreme weather and disease outbreaks are hitting livestock producers harder than ever and this is occurring in tandem with surging global demand for sustainable protein.
Published on November 4, 2025
By Robert Wells
Head of Livestock
3-minute read
Climate disasters or disease epidemics can wipe out entire livestock herds overnight, threatening farmers’ livelihoods and food security. And these are occurring with increasing regularity, right across the globe. For example, a freak heatwave in Kansas in 2022 killed over 2,000 cattle in just a few days, and the ongoing avian influenza crisis has led to more than 170 million poultry losses in the USA alone, with over 1,700 separate outbreaks occurring.
Diseases such as foot-and-mouth and African swine fever have forced authorities to slaughter millions of animals to contain their spread. China’s 2018 swine fever outbreak wiped out about 40% of its pig herd and Europe has lost over 1 million pigs since 2022.
These events are no longer once-in-a-lifetime anomalies, they’re a new reality, largely thanks to the effects of climate change and a highly interconnected world.
At the same time, the world’s appetite for meat and dairy is growing rapidly, with global meat production projected to almost double by 2050, as the population hurtles toward 10 billion.
As a global market, we need sustainable and secure supplies of protein for the future.
Yet the aforementioned extreme weather and epidemics can be sudden, with unexpected shortages and price spikes often hitting consumers and low-income communities the hardest.
Ensuring resilience in our food system is paramount.
That means helping farmers withstand losses so they can continue providing nutritious food, while also encouraging farming practices that are cognisant of the climate and supportive of animal welfare.
This is where high-quality livestock insurance providers can play their part.
If disaster strikes, a good insurance policy should provide farmers with the means to recover and rebuild.
A robust insurance policy acts as a safety net. When a disaster strikes, it provides farmers with the means to recover and rebuild – financially and otherwise. Insurance payouts enable a farm to restock and resume operations, turning a potential wipe-out into a survivable setback.
Equally importantly, insurers work with farms on risk mitigation: encouraging property reviews, emergency plans, vaccination and biosecurity protocols, etc.
In practice, insurance not only pays for losses; it also promotes better preparation and adoption of sustainable best practices, making farms more resilient in the long run. This aligns the livestock sector with broader ESG goals, from climate adaptation to animal welfare.
Innovative insurance solutions are rising to meet these growing risks. One example is the Livestock Insurance Consortium at Lloyd’s of London – a multi-carrier partnership of seven insurers that brings unprecedented capacity to the market.
Led by Markel, the consortium offers up to $30 million of coverage per location for livestock risks, far higher than a single insurer could typically provide.
Why does this matter?
It means even a large poultry integrator or national herd programme can be covered under one facility, including against pandemic-scale outbreaks like avian flu or foot-and-mouth.
By pooling expertise and capital, the consortium can solve industry-wide coverage gaps and ensure payouts even in worst-case scenarios.
It’s a powerful example of insurers stepping up collaboratively to protect the food supply chain against 21st-century threats.
No one can predict the next catastrophe, event or disease - but with the right insurance they can recover from it.
As specialist insurers we want to make sure that no matter the scale of the event, it doesn’t spell the end of a farming business. In helping to maintain farms and farmers’ livelihoods, our aim is not just helping one client, but securing continued food supply for us all.
Robert Wells
Head of Livestock
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