Did You Know?
- Livestock have been named a top cause of greenhouse gases. Greening our food choices and minimizing animal products is the easiest and most effective way for individuals to make real change.
- Most of us blame automobiles and industry for global warming, but animal agriculture is an even bigger global warming culprit.
- Livestock farming contributes carbon dioxide from deforestation and from the fossil fuels used in operations and slaughterhouses. More importantly, animals raised for food are responsible for immense amounts of methane (23x GHG) and nitrous oxide (296x GHG).
Why Focus on Diet Change
According to the United Nations, the livestock sector generates more greenhouse gas emissions than all transport combined. Says Henning Steinfeld, Chief of FAO’s Livestock Information & Policy Branch and senior author of the report: “Livestock are one of the most significant contributors to today’s most serious environmental problems. Urgent action is required to remedy the situation.”
Even more condemning of animal agriculture is the recent World Watch Magazine report, which claims that livestock is actually responsible for more than half of all human-made greenhouse gases. The article says that methane and carbon dioxide have been undercounted and misallocated, totalling in billions of tons of additional greenhouse gases that should be attributed to livestock.
Globally, people are consuming more meat and dairy every year (projected to double by 2050). The United States is by far the largest per capita consumer. Reducing/eliminating meat and other animal products from our diet will have the largest impact in our efforts to reduce global warming.