As sea levels and temperatures rise, weather events worsen, and an increasing number of species face extinction, it’s more important than ever that we do more than pay lip service to reducing our environmental footprint — and that we do it without meat in our mouths.
We could have once been forgiven for not realising that animal agriculture — which encompasses not only meat but also egg and dairy production and co-products like leather and wool — is a leading driver of climate destruction, second only to fossil fuels.
But now it seems that every second scientific study warns us of the huge environmental toll that comes with commodifying animals.
Just recently, a first-of-its-kind report by researchers at Harvard, New York, Leiden, and Oregon State universities that surveyed 210 climate specialists from 48 countries revealed that experts agree: to meet climate goals, we must rapidly reduce livestock emissions and globally shift to a plant-based diet.
Yet despite the writing on the wall, world leaders continue to prop up the meat industry.
You're not just harming animals, you're harming farmers
Prior to Brexit, UK farmers were dependent on massive EU subsidies, and the government has been quick to reassure them that this level of support will continue.
But such crutches don’t just harm animals and the planet; they also hobble farmers by perpetuating reliance on a food system that contributes to the destruction of a dying planet — which cannot sustain such a system — preventing them from future-proofing their livelihoods.
This isn’t about being anti-farm but anti-harm. The world needs farmers. But we don’t need to farm animals.
A 2022 survey revealed that 80% of Scottish farmers were receptive to moving beyond farming animals, but they needed financial support to do so.
More than 1 billion animals are slaughtered for food annually in the UK. Even if we choose to turn a blind eye to the suffering those individuals endure on filthy factory farms and at blood-soaked slaughterhouses, there’s no denying that farming animals are wasteful.
The National Food Strategy shows that 85% of agricultural land in the UK is used to grow crops to feed farmed animals — not humans.
Considering that it takes around 25 calories of grain to produce one calorie of beef, it’s clear that animal agriculture is inherently inefficient.
Change starts on our plates
Research shows that a global shift to a plant-based diet would reduce land use for agriculture by 75%, allowing for a more efficient farm-to-human pipeline as well as a decrease in deforestation.
It would also encourage rewilding and stem biodiversity loss. One analysis found that even just lowering meat consumption in the UK would offer a climate benefit equivalent to taking 8 million cars off the roads, while another study revealed that ending animal farming entirely could sequester the equivalent of up to 10 years of greenhouse gas emissions from all human activities.
This isn’t about being anti-farm but anti-harm. The world needs farmers. But we don’t need to farm animals.
As conscientious consumers, we must not ignore the importance of what — or rather who — is on our dining table.
The UK has one of the world’s most inventive vegan markets, where an abundance of everything from locally grown apples to meatless steaks is widely available. There is still time to turn the climate catastrophe around — and change starts on our plates.
Dr Carys Bennett is Senior Corporate Projects Manager at PETA UK.
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