Kate Kelland, PlanetArk 26 Nov 09;
LONDON - Cutting meat production and consumption by 30 percent would help to reduce carbon emissions and improve health in the most meat-loving nations, scientists said on Wednesday.
Using prediction models, British and Australian researchers found that improving efficiency, increasing carbon capture and reducing fossil fuel dependence in farming would not be enough to meet emissions targets.
But combining these steps with a 30 percent reduction in livestock production in major meat-producing nations and a similar cut in meat-eating, would lead to "substantial population health benefits" and cut emissions, they said.
The study found that in Britain, a 30 percent lower intake of animal-source saturated fat by adults would reduce the number of premature deaths from heart disease by some 17 percent -- equivalent to 18,000 premature deaths averted in one year.
In Sao Paulo, Brazil, it could mean as many as 1,000 premature deaths averted in a year, they said.
According to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, 18 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions are from meat production and experts say rising demand for meat, particularly in countries with growing economies, could drive livestock production up by 85 percent from 2000 levels by 2030.
The scientists said global action was needed to maximize the benefits of cutting meat production and consumption, and that the environmental advantages "may apply only in those countries that currently have high production levels."
The study was published in The Lancet medical journal as part of a series in climate change and health ahead of the Copenhagen global climate summit scheduled next month.
In a second study, British scientists found that increased walking and cycling, and fewer cars, would have a much greater impact on health than low-emission vehicles in rich and middle-income countries.
Andrew Haines, director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and head of the research series, said delegates at Copenhagen needed "to understand the potential health impacts of their plans."
(Editing by Dominic Evans)
Eating less meat helps the planet – and your heart
Andy Coghlan, New Scientist 25 Nov 09;
Skip that third helping of roast beef, save the planet and do your heart a favour at the same time.
That's the advice of Alan Dangour of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and colleagues who explored the livestock industry's potential to help the UK halve its carbon emissions by 2030, relative to 1990 levels, and the knock-on effect on the nation's health.
They found that the industry could slash its emissions, but only if the livestock the UK produces, and the meat the nation consumes, drops by 30 per cent. Farms must also optimise their energy efficiency by, for example, capturing carbon in manure.
The health pay-off would be considerable: 18,000 fewer people would die prematurely in the UK each year from heart attacks – a reduction of 17 per cent – as they would eat less of the saturated fats found in meat.
The effect would not be limited to rich nations. The team found that Brazil could achieve the same health benefits. "We're not saying go vegetarian, we're saying reduce how much livestock produce you consume," says Dangour. The savings could be even higher if reduced death rates from colorectal cancer and obesity had been included, he adds.
Agronomist Kenneth Cassman of the University of Nebraska warns that cutting production in one region can boost it elsewhere, causing a rise in global emissions. "Reducing production of livestock products in a developed country like the UK does little to influence global trends in production and consumption where most of the increase in demand between now and 2050 will come from developing countries," he says.
Journal reference: The Lancet, DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61753-0
