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Study Shows No-Meat Diet is not a Blanket Solution to the Climate Crisis
Written by AZoCleantechDec 17 2020
People living in industrialized regions such as Europe or the United States are often encouraged to consume less meat and animal-based foods to ensure a healthier diet that is lower in emissions.
Livestock being fed improved forages in Tanzania. Image Credit: Georgina Smith/International Center for Tropical Agriculture.
However, such suggestions are not versatile solutions in low- or middle-income countries, where livestock are vital to incomes and diets, debate researchers in a study published recently in
Environmental Research Letters.
Conclusions drawn in widely publicized reports argue that a main solution to the climate and human health crisis globally is to eat no or little meat but they are biased towards industrialized, Western systems.
No-meat Diet Everywhere Will Not Solve Climate Change by Iswarya on December 17, 2020 at 12:38 PM
People in developed countries like the US or Europe are urged to consume less meat as part of adopting a healthier and low emissions diet. But that is not a universal solution as livestock are critical to diets and incomes in low or middle-income countries, according to a new study. The findings of the study are published in the journal
Environmental Research Letters. Conclusions drawn in widely publicized reports argue that the main solution to the climate and human health crisis globally is to eat no or little meat but they are biased towards industrialized, Western systems, said Birthe Paul, the lead author and environmental scientist at the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).
Removing all meat from the human diet to protect the environment isn’t a workable solution outside rich countries, a new paper reports.
Image credits Ulrike Leone.
Calls to remove all meat from our diets to limit CO2 emissions are only realistic in rich, industrialized regions. In low- or middle-income countries, livestock can represent a critical source of income and food, the paper argues, making such changes practically impossible for locals.
Let’s meat halfway
“Conclusions drawn in widely publicized reports argue that a main solution to the climate and human health crisis globally is to eat no or little meat but they are biased towards industrialized, Western systems,” said Birthe Paul, the lead author and environmental scientist at the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).
No one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to eating less meat
SHARES
Scientists have argued that the pressure to eat less meat might actually be counter-productive in some parts of the world, where livestock are essential to the economy and sustainability.
People in industrialised regions like the US or Europe are generally urged to eat less meat and animal-source foods as part of a healthier and lower-emissions diet. However, scientists have stated that such recommendations are not universal solutions in low- or middle-income countries, where livestock are critical to incomes and diets.
“Conclusions drawn in widely publicised reports argue that a main solution to the climate and human health crisis globally is to eat no or little meat, but they are biased towards industrialised, Western systems,” said Birthe Paul, the lead author and environmental scientist at the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).