A new study shows that replacing 50% of our animal-based foods with plant-based alternatives could cut greenhouse gas emissions from farming by 31% by 2050 and protect forests and natural lands. Can get help.
According to a study published in nature communicationDespite accounting for less than 20% of the global food energy supply, producing animal-based foods such as meat, chicken, pork and milk consumes extensive resources, causing significant greenhouse gas emissions and loss of biodiversity. is harmed.
“Plant-based meat is not only a new food product, but also an important opportunity to achieve food security and climate goals, as well as health and biodiversity objectives around the world.” The study co-author saidR, Eva Wollenberg, a social scientist at the University of Vermont. “Nevertheless, such changes are challenging and require multiple technological innovations and policy interventions.”
The research is the first of its kind to examine the global impacts on food security and the environment when changes to plant-based consumption occur, and it models dietary changes using plant-based recipes for beef, pork, chicken and milk. Shows the landscape.
The study states that switching just 50% of our diet to plant-based dishes could have the following benefits:
– We could reduce the amount of land used for farming globally by 12% instead of needing more land.
– Depletion of forests and natural land will almost stop.
– The amount of nitrogen added to agricultural land will be about half of what would otherwise be used.
Instead of increasing, water usage will be reduced by 10%.
– Greenhouse gas emissions could decline by 31% in 2050, equivalent to 2.1 billion metric tons of CO2 per year (compared to an average of 1.6 billion metric tons per year from 2020 to 2050).
– The global undernutrition rate will decline from 3.8% to 3.6%, reducing the number of hungry people by 31 million.
Researchers say that if we make 90% replacement, all agricultural and land-use emissions will be reduced by 11.1 billion metric tons of CO2 per year by 2050.
However, the study notes that regional impacts may vary due to differences in population, diet, agricultural productivity and international food trade.
For example, in America, country leads In beef and veal production, production is expected to exceed 12.6 million metric tons in 2022. This resulted in the US having about 30 million cows for beef production alone in 2022, three times the dairy cow population that year.
However, data shows Younger generations are more likely to adopt a plant-based diet, with Gen Z leading the trend.