Animal Foods Cause Twice the Emissions of Plant Foods, Global Study Finds

Producing animal-based foods releases twice the greenhouse gases of producing plant-based foods, according to a new global map of food emissions. Animal foods, including the crops grown to feed livestock, account for 57% of food production emissions, against 29% for plant foods.

Researchers at the University of Illinois built a model covering carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide from food production worldwide, around 2010. They put total food production emissions at 17.3 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent a year. The study is published in Nature Food.

Beef is the single biggest contributor, at 25% of all food production emissions, while rice tops the plant foods at 12%. China, Brazil, the US and India lead emissions from animal-based foods. Land use change and farmland management are the biggest sources by activity.

Developing climate mitigation strategies must rely on accurate estimates of GHG emissions from all sources, including those from the production and consumption of total and individual plant- and animal-based foods.

That is co-author Professor Atul Jain, in the University of Illinois release. The researchers hope everyone from policymakers to individuals will use the figures to cut emissions.

It confirms the Oxford study that found a vegan diet could cut food emissions by up to 87%, and last year's warning that food emissions alone would blow the 1.5C target.

Half the beef, a lot less heat.