Plant-based eating regimen creates only around 30% of the environmental footprint compared to a high-meat dietary plan.
A new study published in Nature Food by researchers at the University of Oxford has highlighted the significant environmental benefits of adopting a vegan diet compared to high-meat diets. The study, which analysed the dietary data of 55,000 individuals, found that a vegan diet could reduce greenhouse gas emissions, resource use, and overall carbon footprint.
The research revealed that a vegan diet produces up to 75% fewer planet-warming gases than an omnivorous (high-meat) diet, significantly lowering an individual's carbon footprint related to food consumption. This reduction in greenhouse gas emissions contributes to slowing climate change.
Plant-based diets also require less energy, land, and water than animal-based diets. This leads to reduced deforestation and habitat loss compared to diets rich in meat. In fact, individual adoption of a vegan diet can reduce food-related carbon emissions by as much as 73%.
The study found that even the least sustainable vegan diet was more environmentally-friendly than the most sustainable meat eater's diet. Vegans in the study had 25% of the dietary impact of high meat-eaters in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, 25% for land use, 46% for water use, 27% for water pollution, and 34% for biodiversity.
The findings of this study underscore the strong climate impact of shifting away from meat-heavy diets. The study's authors emphasise that widespread shifts towards plant-based eating patterns could have substantial positive effects on the planet's sustainability.
In the UK, meat eating declined over the decade to 2018, but in order to meet environmental targets, the National Food Strategy and the UK's Climate Change Committee recommend an additional 30%-35% reduction. The study's findings support these recommendations, suggesting that a transition towards more plant-based diets could be a key strategy in achieving these environmental goals.
Dr. Keren Papier, a Senior Nutritional Epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, and Michael Clark, a researcher at the University, led the study. The research was conducted using a dataset containing information on the environmental impact of 57,000 foods, factoring in how and where a food is produced.
The choices we make about what we eat are personal and can be difficult to change, but our study and others are continuing to solidify evidence that the food system is having a massive global environmental and health impact. This article was originally published on The Conversation.
It is estimated that the food system is responsible for around 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, 70% of the world's freshwater use, and 78% of freshwater pollution. By making conscious choices about our diets, we can contribute to reducing these environmental impacts and preserving our planet for future generations.
- A vegan diet has been shown to produce up to 75% fewer planet-warming gases, contributing to slowing climate change, as revealed in a study published in Nature Food.
- Shifting towards plant-based diets could have substantial positive effects on the planet's sustainability, especially considering that the least sustainable vegan diet was more environmentally-friendly than the most sustainable meat eater's diet, as suggested by a study led by Dr. Keren Papier and Michael Clark.
- The choice to adopt a vegan diet can help reduce food-related carbon emissions by as much as 73%, saving energy, land, water, and reducing deforestation and habitat loss, as indicated in the study.
