Animal agriculture account for around 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions (UN FAO)
Even if we exclude methane completely, the footprint of lamb or beef from dairy herds is five times higher than tofu; ten times higher than beans; and more than twenty times higher than peas for the same amount of protein. (Our World in Data)
Animal agriculture likely accounts for more greenhouse emissions than the combined total of every car, truck, train, aeroplane, and ship on the planet. (World Resources Institute)
If everyone in the US went one day a week without eating meat or cheese, it would be the emissions reduction equivalent of taking 7.6 million cars off the road. (Environmental Working Group)
Livestock emissions – from manure and gastroenteric releases – account for roughly 32 per cent of human-caused methane emissions. (UN Environment Programme)
Methane (as produced by grazing animals),has a warming impact 86 times stronger than CO 2 per unit of mass over a 20 year period. Methane has an atmospheric lifespan of around 12 years. (Climate and Clean Air Coalition)
Beef and dairy are the most emissions-intensive livestock products and are responsible for the most emissions, accounting for 65 per cent of the total GHGs emitted by livestock. Average global estimates suggest that, per unit of protein, GHG emissions from beef production are around 150 times those of soy products, by volume, and even the least emissions-intensive meat products – pork and chicken – produce 20–25 times more GHGs. (Chatham House)
Transport is a small contributor to emissions. For most food products, it accounts for less than 10%, and it’s much smaller for the largest GHG emitters. In beef from beef herds, it’s 0.5%. (Our World in Data)
Eating local beef or lamb has many times the carbon footprint of most other foods. Whether they are grown locally or shipped from the other side of the world matters very little for total emissions. (Our World in Data)
The biggest dairy companies in the world have the same combined greenhouse gas emissions as the UK, the sixth biggest economy in the world (AITP)
Waste
Globally, livestock animals produce an estimated 3.12 billion tons of manure each year, 127 million metric tons of which are nitrogen. By 2030, the planet will generate at least five billion tonnes of faeces each year, 79% of which is currently produced by livestock. (FAIRR)
According to the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, livestock and poultry raised in the United States produce nearly 1.4 billion tons of manure annually, almost five times the waste of the entire U.S. population (NRDC)
Animal waste this waste is disposed of by spreading it, untreated, on land. Operators are supposed to apply only the amount that crops can use, but in reality, there is often too much manure so it is applied beyond the ground’s natural absorption rate, leading to runoff into water sources. (NRDC)
Lagoons of animal waste contain a toxic stew of antibiotics residue, chemicals, and bacteria decomposing the waste, a medley that can take on a sickly hue. They’re often unlined and are prone to overflows, leaks, and spills, causing the contents to leach into the soil and groundwater. (NRDC)
Conservation
Cattle ranching is among the leading drivers of deforestion in Brazilian Amazon. (World Bank)
Livestock make up 62% of the world’s mammal biomass; humans account for 34%; and wild mammals are just 4% (Our World in Data)
Poultry (mostly chickens) makes up 71% of the biomass of all birds on earth (Our World in Data)
Global demand for meat is one of the leading drivers of species extinction (WWF)
Impact of Plant-Based Diets
Recent analyses have shown that it is unlikely global temperature rises can be kept below two degrees Celsius without a shift in global meat and dairy consumption. (Chatham House)
Dietary GHG emissions in self-selected meat-eaters are approximately twice as high as those in vegans. (Springer)
There is considerable variation in the amount of GHG emissions related to different food groups, with animal-based products generally having much greater emissions than plant-based products per unit weight. (Springer)
Although new technologies and changes in farming practices provide some scope for reduction in GHG emissions, substantial reductions can only be achieved through changes in consumption patterns and reduction in food waste. (Springer)
Moving from a high meat diet to a low meat diet would reduce an individual’s carbon footprint by 920kgCO2e every year, moving from a high meat diet to a vegetarian diet would reduce the carbon footprint by 1,230kgCO2e/year, and moving from a high meat diet to a vegan diet would reduce the carbon footprint by 1,560kgCO2e/year. For context, an individual travelling on an economy return flight from London to New York has an addition to their carbon footprint of 960kgCO2e. (Springer)
The impacts of the lowest-impact animal products exceed average impacts of substitute vegetable proteins across GHG emissions, eutrophication, acidification (excluding nuts), and frequently land use (J.Poore, Science)
Moving from current diets to a diet that excludes animal products has transformative potential, reducing food’s land use by 3.1 (2.8 to 3.3) billion ha (a 76% reduction), including a 19% reduction in arable land; food’s GHG emissions by 6.6 (5.5 to 7.4) billion metric tons of CO2eq (a 49% reduction); acidification by 50% (45 to 54%); eutrophication by 49% (37 to 56%); and scarcity-weighted freshwater withdrawals by 19% (−5 to 32%). (J.Poore, Science)
For the United States, where per capita meat consumption is three times the global average, dietary change has the potential for a far greater effect on food’s different emissions, reduc-ing them by 61 to 73%. (J.Poore, Science)
Transitioning toward more plant-based diets that are in line with standard dietary guidelines could reduce global mortality by 6–10% and food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 29–70% compared with a reference scenario in 2050. (PNAS)
Plant-based animal product alternatives are healthier and more environmentally sustainable than animal products (Science Direct)
Dietary change is more important than intensification for climate targets in 2050 (Science Direct)
