Coordinated Day of Action Ahead of World Bank Spring Meetings Highlights Solutions for Sustainable Food Systems
WASHINGTON — On April 15, 2026, civil society organizations and advocates across dozens of countries will mobilize as part of a Global Day of Action, calling on the World Bank Group to end financing for industrial factory farming and instead invest in sustainable, community-led food systems.
The coordinated actions, including a delivery event at the Bank’s headquarters, will take place during the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C., targeting decision-makers responsible for shaping global development finance.
Factory farming is increasingly recognized as a major contributor to climate change, biodiversity loss, public health risks, and food insecurity.
The World Bank Group invested $1.4 billion in industrial livestock between 2023–2024 alone. Its private sector arm, the IFC, approved 38 industrial livestock investments totaling around $2 billion between 2020–2025 according to a recent S3F analysis. Meanwhile, the World Bank plans to expand its agribusiness portfolio to $9 billion annually by 2030, and the IFC is undergoing a once-in-a-decade review of its environmental and social Performance Standards making this a critical moment to shift the direction of public finance.
“Factory farming isn’t just a farming issue. It’s a climate issue, a public health issue, and a barrier to achieving global development goals,” said Claudia Escorza, Latin America Regional Coordinator for the Stop Financing Factory Farming Campaign.
The Global Day of Action emphasizes solutions, highlighting agroecology and locally rooted food systems as viable, scalable alternatives that support both people and the planet. The mobilization also highlights a core contradiction: Even as the World Bank Group promotes climate and development goals, it continues to finance industrial livestock production through its private sector arm.
Participants in the Global Day of Action are calling on the World Bank Group to:
- End financing for industrial livestock and factory farming
- Align investments with climate, biodiversity, and public health goals
- Support agroecology and small-scale producers through public finance
Actions include rallies, demonstrations, and visual installations designed to highlight the real costs of factory farming and the urgent need for change.
For more information about the Global Day of Action, visit https://stopfinancingfactoryfarming.com/gdoa2026.
Media contact: Holly Shulman, [email protected], +1-603-715-4321