Cigarette-style climate warnings on food could cut meat consumption, study suggests

MicroWave@lemmy.world to World News@lemmy.world – 471 points – Cigarette-style climate warnings on food could cut meat consumption, study suggests
theguardian.com

People are used to seeing stark warnings on tobacco products alerting them about the potentially deadly risks to health. Now a study suggests similar labelling on food could help them make wiser choices about not just their health, but the health of the planet.

The research, by academics at Durham University, found that warning labels including a graphic image – similar to those warning of impotence, heart disease or lung cancer on cigarette packets – could reduce selections of meals containing meat by 7-10%.

It is a change that could have a material impact on the future of the planet. According to a recent YouGov poll, 72% of the UK population classify themselves as meat-eaters. But the Climate Change Committee (CCC), which advises the government on its net zero goals, has said the UK needs to slash its meat consumption by 20% by 2030, and 50% by 2050, in order to meet them.

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Not necessarily cow farts, but manure, fertilizer, and landscaping.

Methane comes primarily from livestock digestion (known as enteric fermentation) and the way livestock manure is managed. It contributes the most to agricultural emissions of greenhouse gases.

The second largest contributor is nitrous oxide, which results mostly from agricultural fertilizer application to soils and from manure management.

Carbon dioxide emissions come from increased decomposition of plant matter in soils and from converting lands to agricultural uses. Those emissions are partially offset by the increased plant matter stored in cropland soils.

You're not wrong about the same gasses being created by decomposing grass and digested grass, but like most things, it's a multifaceted issue.

As they say, you can't get snakes from chicken eggs.

Good answer

Truth be told the nugget about the same gasses being released from digestion and decomposition was news to me, so thank you for that. My knee-jerk reaction was to refute it but I realized that I truly didn't know for sure. So I checked, lo and behold, I was wrong, and now I've learned something today.