How climate change is affecting what we grow and eat

Longreach grazier Peter Whip runs cattle on country that neighbours the desert. 

Mark Adams is one of the farmers across the cropping
region in south-west WA who is adapting to changing
 rainfall patterns.

The climate there has always been variable. Dry times are a familiar foe and big variations in rainfall are all too common.

That makes it hard to pinpoint how climate change is directly affecting him.

But there is one measurement that illustrates it all too well — days over 35 degrees Celsius.

"There's a noticeable increase in days over 35," Mr Whip says.

"And the reason that's important is because once you get over 35 degrees, that's when the temperature starts to make an impact on cattle."

At that temperature, cattle don't want to eat as much. By 40 degrees, their intake of dry matter can drop by up to 50 per cent.

Read the story from ABC News by national regional and rural reporter Jess Davis and weather reporter Kate Doyle with graphics by Brett Tweedie - “How climate change is affecting what we grow and eat."