Scientists are increasingly pointing to a more remarkable lifestyle change that would be the most significant way to help the planet: eating far less meat.
Reports released over the past year have laid bare the impact that eating meat, especially beef and pork has upon the environment by fueling climate change and polluting landscapes and waterways.
Industrialised agriculture and the onset of the worst species extinction crisis since the demise of the dinosaurs means that livestock and humans now make up 96% of all mammals. But despite consuming the vast majority of farmland, meat and dairy account for just 18% of all food calories and around a third of protein.
The mighty hoofprint of farmed meat isn’t just inefficient. Deforestation to make way for livestock, along with methane emissions from cows and fertiliser use, creates as many greenhouse gas emissions as all the world’s cars, trucks, and aeroplanes. Meat rearing practices risk mass extinctions of other animals and more than significant pollution of streams, rivers, and the ocean.
In October 2018, scientists warned that considerable reductions in meat eating are required if the world is to stave off dangerous climate change, with beef consumption in western countries needing to drop by 90%.
Consumption of pork, milk and eggs will also need to decline sharply, as the world’s population will possibly increase by an extra 2 billion people by 2050. Researchers said there would need to be a global shift to a “flexitarian” diet to help keep the global temperature increase from breaching a 2C limit agreed by governments.
Several measures have been suggested to achieve this, ranging from a tax on red meat to feeding seaweed to cows to reduce methane escaping from their burps. Some advocates have promoted eating insects instead of steaks and pork chops.
Whichever way the ball rolls, there’s hope that 2019 will be a significant year to overhaul the broken global food system.
Original Post: The Guardian