Meat Production Is Major Cause Of Climate Change

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Greenhouse gas emissions from meat production are significant and need to be reduced, according to a recent report published in the January 2014 issue of Nature Climate Change, a scientific journal and featured in the February issue of Food Nutrition & Science.

The report looked at the detrimental effects of meat production on climate change from non-CO2 greenhouse gases emissions, which contribute to about a third of total emissions. Methane (CH4) is the most abundant of these non-CO2 gases.

Worldwide, livestock accounts for about 14.5 percent of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, with cattle contributing the most. Ruminants like cattle, sheep, goats and buffalo that eat plants and digest them in a multi-chambered stomach contribute 11.6 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. Cattle specifically contribute 9.4 percent.

"As developing countries become wealthier, the demand and production of meat increases and with annual meat production growing rapidly worldwide, this greenhouse gas footprint will continue to grow," says Phil Lempert, founder of Food Nutrition & Science and CEO of The Lempert Report. "Policies are needed to both reduce meat consumption as well as improve agricultural production efficiencies."

Also in the February issue, an article about what makes food "sustainable." Sometimes sustainable is defined as being green or earth conscious or globally responsible. However, it's an important aspect of the food industry that affects each aspect of production, from farm to table, ensuring there are enough resources to feed future generations. The article examines what's being done to better define it.

Other February features include an interview with an executive from Hampton Creek Foods, a food technology company working to finding new ways of utilizing plants to fulfill the role that animal products play in thousands of different food products, and an interview with the founder of Chocovivo, the first bean-to-bar chocolate factory in Los Angeles, and more.

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SOURCE Food Nutrition & Science