The Vegan Teacher was right!?!?
There has been a long debate surrounding veganism and if one should go vegan or not. Most of the population decided not to go vegan as they did not want to give up their precious meat, nor adapt their eating habits. However, 79 million did decide that going vegan was worth it, according to data from January 2021.
Image from NY Times
Whether someone should go vegan is still a controversy, but something that isn’t is the amount of damage eating meat causes to the environment. Meat consumption results in the release of greenhouse gases into the environment, which leads to climate change. It is responsible for the release of gases such as methane, CO2, and nitrous oxide. According to the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization, meat, and dairy account for about 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with beef being the major culprit. These industries contribute to the emission of 7.1 gigatons of greenhouse gases annually, Beef generates 60 kg of greenhouse gas per kilogram of meat produced, more than twice the gas produced by lamb — the second-largest contributor. Recent estimates say that animals contribute to as much as a third of the methane in the atmosphere.
The emission of greenhouse gases not only comes from the byproduct of animals but also the system of food production as a whole. This includes the use of farming machinery, spraying of fertilizer, and the transportation of products. Researchers and scientists claim that the emissions brought by food production annually are more than double the total emissions of the U.S. In recent years, scientists have warned against this as it is very unsustainable.
As the meat market grows, the need for it being more environmentally friendly grows. For example, the meat market in China has become very profitable, and with that comes deforestation. Farmers have destroyed hundreds of thousands of square meters of forest around the world in hopes of profit. This destroys ecosystems and increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. According to data, China is first on the list for having consumed the most meat in 2011, with the EU in second and the U.S. in third. China consumed around 75 metric tons, Europe consumed 40, and the United States consumed 35.
Chart by Carbon Brief
The graph above shows that animal-based foods have a substantially larger carbon footprint compared to fruits and vegetables. For example, the 24 kilograms of carbon from lamb to the 0–5 kilograms of carbon from vegetables and fruits. Beef (beef herd) dwarfs the carbon footprint of lamb, with it being more than two times more. This is because of how expensive and time-consuming beef is. Animals produce a greenhouse gas called methane through their digestive system. Methane is more than 25 times as powerful as carbon (CO2). Coffee and dark chocolate — foods that are not animal-based — have large carbon footprints as well. Animals with four stomachs usually have greenhouse effects. The process in which animals get slaughtered to when they get shipped and end up in the supermarket all factor into carbon footprints. In 2019 alone, an estimated amount of 325 million metric tons of meat was produced.
Many scientists and researchers have taken action to advocate for this issue. The International Institute for Applied Science Analysis suggests taking steps to lessen the methane emission from meat. This can be done by reducing deforestation in the Amazon rain forest, supporting more organic farming practices, eating less red meat, and using environmentally friendly feed. Becoming vegan or eating more vegetables/plants is a viable choice as well. Plant-based foods emit carbon at a rate of 10–50 times less than animal-based foods.
At the rate that the emissions are going, researchers say that a third of the global food production will be at risk by the end of the century. Meat consumption is expected to rise by 75% in 2050.
