Global Food Policy Report, 2016 published by International Food Policy Research Institute, states that a global convergence toward Western-style diets that are high in calories, protein, and animal-based foods poses challenges for food security and sustainability.
Here are 10 shocking findings:
1. Per capita beef consumption has been rising in emerging economies including India, China and Brazil.
2. In Brazil, per capita beef availability has increased steadily over recent decades and is now more than three times the world average, having surpassed that of the United States in 2008.
3. In China, per capita beef availability is still only half of the world average, but is growing.
4. In India, growing demand for dairy products is spurring an expansion in the cattle population.
5. Global demand for beef is projected to increase by 95 percent between 2006 and 2050, with much of this growth occurring in countries where current per capita consumption is low, such as China and India.
6. Beef has one of the lowest “feed-to-food” conversion efficiencies of commonly consumed foods. Only 1 percent of gross cattle feed energy and 4 percent of ingested protein are converted to human-edible calories and protein.
7. As a result, beef uses more land and freshwater, and generates more greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per unit of protein than other commonly consumed food.
8. One-quarter of the earth’s land mass, excluding Antarctica, is used as pasture, and beef accounts for one-third of the global water footprint of farm animal production.
9. Ruminants (of which beef is the most commonly produced) are responsible for nearly half of GHG emissions from agricultural production.
10. Recognizing the potential environmental implications of demand growth, several international organizations and researchers have stated that reducing the consumption of GHG-intensive food, particularly beef, is an important element in limiting global warming to 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.
Report is available on http://www.ifpri.org/publication/shifting-diets-toward-sustainable-food-future
Move to a vegan diet for a future that has a chance.