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Between 2001 and 2011, emission of carbon dioxide from crops and livestock rose 14 per cent from 4.7 billion tonnes to 5.3 billion tonnes, showed data compiled by the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).In its first report on greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, forestry and other land use, FAO attributed the increase in global carbon dioxide emissions to a significant spurt in agricultural output in developing countries. The report showed emissions from agriculture, forestry and fisheries nearly doubled through the past fifty years; by 2050, these could increase 30 per cent, if immediate efforts to stop these aren’t taken.Net greenhouse gas emissions due to change in land use and deforestation fell 10 per cent in the 2001-2010 period, averaging about three billion tonnes a year of carbon dioxide. This resulted from reduced deforestation and a rise in the amount of atmospheric carbon being sequestered in many countries. Net forest conversion to other lands (deforestation) resulted in the release of four billion tonnes of carbon dioxide a year into the environment. The release of another billion tonnes of carbon dioxide a year was recorded from degraded peat lands, while an average 0.2 billion tonnes was released due to biomass fires.