Uoc, University in Cologne, Germany

London, April 26 A global decline of at least 75 per cent in meat eating patterns may help beat climate change, claims a new study.Researchers at University of Bonn in Germany stated that every citizen in the European Union consumes around 80 kg of meat per year, resulting in damages for livestock farming, climate and the environment.They argued there are good reasons for significantly reducing consumption of animal-based foods, for instance, ruminants (herbivorous mammals) produce methane, which accelerates global warming.Animals also convert only a portion of the calories they are fed into meat.In order to feed the same number of people, meat therefore requires a much larger land area. This is to the detriment of eco-systems, as less space is left for natural species conservation.Furthermore, eating too much meat is not healthy and can promote chronic diseases."If all humans consumed as much meat as Europeans or North Americans, we would certainly miss the international climate targets and many eco-systems would collapse," said Prof. Dr. Matin Qaim of the Center for Development Research (ZEF) at varsity."We therefore need to significantly reduce our meat consumption, ideally to 20 kg or less annually. The war in Ukraine and the resulting shortages in international markets for cereal grains also underline that less grain should be fed to animals in order to support food security," Qaim said.Currently, around half of all grains produced worldwide are used as animal feed, Qaim noted.At the same time, a complete switch of humanity to vegetarian or vegan diets may not be the best solution, the researchers said.It is because there are many regions where plant-based foods cannot be grown. Poorer regions in particular also lack plant sources of high-quality proteins and micro-nutrients.For many people, animals are also an important source of income. If the revenue from milk, eggs and meat is lost, this can threaten their livelihoods.In any case, the poorer countries are not the problem, the authors point out. For their inhabitants, meat is usually much less frequently on the menu than in industrialised nations. This means that the rich countries in particular must reduce their meat consumption, the researchers said.Qaim believes it is important to also consider higher taxes on animal-based foods.The team also called for "sustainable consumption" to be increasingly integrated into school curricula. These contents should also be better included into the training of future teachers.Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

UocFOLLOW

Uoc, Latest News

Berlin, May 3 Consumers and companies in Germany should prepare for a long period of high energy prices, ... ...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz interacted with top executives from German and Indian companies to strengthen the economic and commercial partnership between the two countries. ...

Holger Rune claimed his first ATP Tour title after his opponent Botic van de Zandschulp was forced to retire in the final of the Bavarian International Tennis Championships in Munich on Sunday. ...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-nation visit will have a substantial and comprehensive agenda during his bilateral and multilateral meetings. ...

Business sold to France based Plastic Omnium for 600 million euros Aurangabad, April 29: Aurangabad-based Varroc Engineering has signed ... ...

Two-day national conference on E-Mobility Ecosystem Aurangabad, April 28: The ‘Energy Conclave 2022’ jointly organised by the Chamber of ... ...

Berlin, April 28 Consumer confidence in Germany deteriorated significantly in April amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to a ... ...

London, April 26 A global decline of at least 75 per cent in meat eating patterns may help ... ...