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Reducing food's environmental impacts through producers and consumers
Abstract and Figures
The global impacts of food production
Food is produced and processed by millions of farmers and intermediaries globally, with substantial associated environmental costs. Given the heterogeneity of producers, what is the best way to reduce food's environmental impacts? Poore and Nemecek consolidated data on the multiple environmental impacts of ∼38,000 farms producing 40 different agricultural goods around the world in a meta-analysis comparing various types of food production systems. The environmental cost of producing the same goods can be highly variable. However, this heterogeneity creates opportunities to target the small numbers of producers that have the most impact.
Science , this issue p. 987
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... The key motivation here is that some foods have much greater impacts than others [29,35,36]. Because they grow relatively slowly, produce methane and require a lot of land for feed or grazing, ruminant animals have especially high greenhouse gas footprints. ...
... Because they grow relatively slowly, produce methane and require a lot of land for feed or grazing, ruminant animals have especially high greenhouse gas footprints. Aggregate emissions per kilogram are thus on average around 40 times greater for ruminant meat than for pulses ( [36,37]-although note the considerable within-commodity variation in emissions as well). The nitrogen-use efficiency, eutrophication and acidification potential of different foods tend (with important exceptions) to covary quite closely with their greenhouse gas footprint [35,38]. ...
... The nitrogen-use efficiency, eutrophication and acidification potential of different foods tend (with important exceptions) to covary quite closely with their greenhouse gas footprint [35,38]. Effects on biodiversity are typically proxied by land use (for other proxies see [39,40]) with the area required per kilogram of product again typically much greater for ruminant-derived and some other animal proteins than for plant-based foodstuffs [36]. There is also extensive evidence that the meat-heavy diets typical of many western countries are linked to a higher prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as stroke, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease and colorectal cancer [29,[41][42][43]. ...
Food production does more damage to wild species than any other sector of human activity, yet how best to limit its growing impact is greatly contested. Reviewing progress to date in interventions that encourage less damaging diets or cut food loss and waste, we conclude that both are essential but far from sufficient. In terms of production, field studies from five continents quantifying the population-level impacts of land sharing, land sparing, intermediate and mixed approaches for almost 2000 individually assessed species show that implementing high-yield farming to spare natural habitats consistently outperforms land sharing, particularly for species of highest conservation concern. Sparing also offers considerable potential for mitigating climate change. Delivering land sparing nevertheless raises several important challenges—in particular, identifying and promoting higher yielding farm systems that are less environmentally harmful than current industrial agriculture, and devising mechanisms to limit rebound effects and instead tie yield gains to habitat conservation. Progress will depend on conservationists forging novel collaborations with the agriculture sector. While this may be challenging, we suggest that without it there is no realistic prospect of slowing biodiversity loss.
This article is part of the discussion meeting issue ‘Bending the curve towards nature recovery: building on Georgina Mace's legacy for a biodiverse future’.
... 128 Current red meat production practices are associated with significant greenhouse gas emissions, water withdrawal, acidification, deforestation, eutrophication and waste. 129 Grazing on Brown and Dark Brown soils enhances biodiversity in northtemperate grasslands, and maintains soils and human livelihoods. 130,131 Rotational grazing on existing arid rangelands retains carbon in soils and provides suitably remote habitats for wildlife minimizing disturbance and other human impacts. ...
... An environmental impact can vary 50-fold from high to low depending on specific practices in beef production. 129 The authors suggest that a dietary change holds significant promise for sustainability. Short of abandoning some diets including red meats, however, they suggest that consumers become drivers of sustainability by monitoring their own food-induced impacts and purchase directly from individual producers or producer groups that can offer the lowest-impact beef. ...
We use banding, field observations and related data to describe eagle's ecological characteristics, including nesting prey use and trends, migration routes, winter distribution and survival. For a conservation perspective we examine interdisciplinary analyses toward broad based sustainability.
... The current supply of aquatic products is sufficient to meet food consumption needs. Previous research has shown that farmed fish has only 1/12 the carbon footprint of beef [56]. In the future, emissions can be reduced by adjusting dietary patterns-specifically by increasing aquatic product consumption and reducing beef intake, without compromising nutritional requirementsleading to positive ecological outcomes. ...
Aquatic foods play a pivotal role in transforming food systems. As the world’s leading producer, consumer, and trader of aquatic products, China’s potential for sustainable supply and consumption is critical to understand. The aim of this study was to depict the dynamic trends of aquatic products and the consequences of sustainable diets and environmental impacts. A panel dataset about Chinese aquatic products covering the period from 1952 to 2023 was drawn for analysis. Diet sustainability was assessed with the deviation from the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022) and EAT-Lancet recommendations. The environmental impacts of aquatic products’ supply and consumption were assessed using carbon footprints and water footprints. The findings reveal that aquatic products’ supply increased from 4.65 million tons to 71.16 million tons from 1978 to 2023, and annual aquatic food consumption per capita increased from 3.50 kg in 1978 to 15.20 kg. While overall supply meets consumption needs, structural imbalances persist at the provincial level. Over time, the influence of marine fishery products has declined from 1.06 million tons (63.63%) in 1952 to 35.85 million tons (50.38%) in 2023, whereas offshore aquaculture shows promising potential for meeting future supply demands (23.96 million tons in 2023, accounting for 66.82% of marine fishery production). To align with healthy dietary goals and environmentally sustainable food systems, provincial aquatic food demand across China was adjusted. The carbon footprints and water footprints of both current and adjusted consumption patterns were also assessed. The results indicate that adjusting consumption based on the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022) and EAT-Lancet recommendations could reduce environmental impacts to different degrees. The findings could offer valuable references and insights into developing sustainable strategies in aquatic product management and advancing food system transformation.
... The dairy industry has come under scrutiny for its environmental impact, particularly in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, water usageand land use. Cattle farming is a significant contributor to methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas [8]. In contrast, plant-based milk production generally has a lower environmental footprint, requiring less water, landand energy compared to dairy milk production. ...
... This education fosters basic self-sufficiency skills, respect for life, and gratitude, and provides knowledge about local agriculture, proper dietary lifestyles, and their culture, as well as the relationship between agriculture, dietary practices, and the ecological environment [6]. It integrates "dietary culture" and "farming experience", enhancing students' understanding of food sources, encouraging them to try different foods, and improving picky eating habits to foster healthy dietary practices [7]. However, traditional learning approaches face challenges, such as teachers' lack of farming knowledge and the slow growth of crops, alongside considerations for teaching schedules [8]. ...
This study developed a cloud-based agricultural environmental sensing framework and system to support traditional food and agricultural education, aiming to overcome the limitations of conventional teaching methods and enhance the learning experience. The system includes solar panels, humidity sensors, temperature sensors, and light sensors, which are sustainable energy components and sensors used to monitor the growth environment of crops. Integrated with Internet of Things (IoT) technology and cloud services, the system can instantly monitor the environment of planted crops, providing students and teachers with critical data on factors affecting crop development. By real-time monitoring of crop growth environments, students and teachers can continuously record and observe the growth of crops, ensuring that the educational process is uninterrupted. To evaluate the effect of the proposed system on students’ learning performance in traditional food and agricultural education courses, a quasi-experiment was conducted in an elementary school setting over six weeks, involving two classes. One class served as the control group, engaged in traditional food and agricultural education courses without the proposed system, while the other, the experimental group, was engaged in the courses with the proposed system. The results indicated no significant differences between the experimental and control groups in terms of learning achievements, motivation, or attitudes.
At this stage of the Great Acceleration of the Anthropocene, humanity is experiencing the global issues of worsening climate change impacts, devastating damage from more frequent and severe natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic, all of which are attributable to ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss. The global community recognises that these issues pose severe societal and economic risks. “Nature-based solutions” have been posited as a means to address these threats. Nature-based solutions utilise natural terrestrial ecosystem functions to provide environmental, social and economic benefits at low cost. The growing social demand for nature-based solutions constitutes an opportunity for the field of ecology to expand beyond the conventional focus on biodiversity and conservation and shift to presenting biodiversity and ecosystem functions as the basis of human well-being and social sustainability. We sought to identify a trajectory for ecological research that is aimed at contributing to the effective implementation of nature-based solutions. First, we summarise current social needs related to terrestrial ecosystem utilisation. Next, we provide an overview of existing literature and knowledge regarding biodiversity and terrestrial ecosystem function, which are critical to nature-based solutions. Finally, we identify outstanding ecological hurdles to the implementation of these strategies and propose a way forward based on our findings. We explain that any basic presentation of ecological processes requires addressing the impacts of climate change and the interrelatedness of biodiversity, climate and social systems. Enhanced ecological process models are critical for linking biodiversity and ecosystems with climate and social systems. It is crucial to establish a framework that embeds monitoring systems, data infrastructure and delivery systems within society to mobilise terrestrial ecosystem and biodiversity data and results. Furthermore, the implementation of nature-based solutions must include acknowledging trade-offs in objectives and transdisciplinary research with other fields and stakeholders with the shared goal of transformative change. Ecological research must demonstrate more clearly how terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystems are linked to human health and well-being, as well as how they are affected by production and consumption systems. In the age of climate change, the knowledge and tools of the ecologist form the foundation of nature-based solutions and provide an indispensable theoretical basis for this approach.
In order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from beef production Uruguayan and New Zealand systems have a significant role to play. Despite the differences, both are exposed to the same threats, i.e. more profitable alternative systems competing for the land, with enhanced production through intensification being a common response, and increasing pressure on the environment. This issue has attracted attention around the world concerning climate change and GHG emissions associated with animal production systems. The comparison using a whole-farm model (OVERSEER®), shows clear differences in GHG emissions, with higher emissions (in carbon dioxide equivalents, CO2 eq) per kilogram of beef on Uruguayan farms (18.4-21.0 kg CO2 eq/beef) compared with New Zealand farms (8-10 kg CO2 eq/beef) as a result of lower production efficiency. However, the emissions per hectare were higher on intensive New Zealand farms (3013-6683 kg CO2 eq/ha/year) than on Uruguayan farms (1895-2226 kg CO2 eq/ha/year) due to high stocking rates and increased inputs. Sensitivity analysis revealed a large effect of methodology and the benefit of using tier 2 factors that account for differences in animal productivity and feed quality. Nitrous oxide emissions factors for animal excreta determined in New Zealand are half of the default IPCC factors, while activity factors for indirect nitrous oxide emissions from excreta-ammonia and N leaching are 50% and 23% respectively. Increased feed conversion efficiency in the more intensive systems was associated with lower GHG intensity but farm systems also need to account for other environmental factors that are more important on a regional or catchment basis.
The study of the environmental impact of agricultural products has significantly grown in recent years, as consumers now demand more information about the product’s footprint in the environment. The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impact of the life cycle phases of tsipouro production, which is one of the traditional products of Greece produced mainly from viticulture. The environmental analysis was performed through the study of eutrophication, global warming, photochemical oxidation and acidification, using the life cycle assessment methodology. The system was studied through fifteen subsystems and a 250 ml bottle of tsipouro, which was the basis of the calculations, was defined as a functional unit. From the results it appears that the process of tsipouro production is the subsystem with the highest energy consumption and the grape cultivation the one with the highest water consumption. In environmental impact the subsystem with the highest contribution is the cultivation of grapes. Also the subsystems production/transportation and use of fertilizers, bottle production/transportation and the process of tsipouro production have a significant contribution. In addition, some literature-based solutions are suggested. Some of the solutions are the use of clearer energy sources, the use of biodiesel and alternative cultivation methods without synthetic fertilizers. The results of this research can be used by tsipouro or similar industries to minimize the environmental impact and focus on the phases that are most involved in it.
Pasture systems for grass-fed beef production in the Gulf Coast region were evaluated for profitability and sustainability over the period 2009/2010 to 2011/2012. May-weaned steers were divided into groups and randomly placed into different pasture systems. Data on input usage, output quantities, and carbon emissions were recorded and analyzed. The least complex grazing system yielded higher profit than the most complex, but the most complex produced the lowest greenhouse gas impact. A trade-off was found between profitability and greenhouse gas impact among the systems.
Feeding late maturing young bulls on high concentrate diets needs adjustment of both animal feeding behaviour and rumen adaptation which can be done by feeding maize silage according to researchers at the National Institute of Agronomic Research, Saint-Genès Champanelle, France who state good economic results are achievable alongside animal welfare.
This study aims to produce multicriteria environmental figures (using Life Cycle Assessment, LCA) associated with socioeconomicindicators for different types of pig units representative of the main French production standards. Eight systems are assessed,defined by their size, the degree of specialization and the location of the pig unit, the slurry management and the pig feedingstrategy. The results are expressed per kilogram live pig produced at the farm level, and the field for Life Cycle Analysis includesproduction and supply of inputs, construction of buildings, pig breeding and management of slurry. These reference standardsprovide a picture of the socioeconomic and environmental performance of French pig production systems and of their variabilitybetween and within systems. The environmental results make it possible to identify the most strategic and easily attainableoptions of improvement. The efficiency of different strategies is evaluated in connection with feed formulation, improvement ofanimal performance, and the implementation of recommended good environmental practices. The socioeconomic indicators showthe various levels of access to the action levers.
In a world with an increasing urban population, analyzing the construction impacts of sanitation infrastructures through Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is necessary for defining the best environmental management strategies. The purpose of this research is studying application of the life cycle assessment methodology to Hazelnut production under rain fed farming systems in forest north of Iran. Data were collected from 36 farms by used a face to face questionnaire method during 2013 year in Guilan province. In rain fed farming system, total green house gases emissions for hazelnut production were showed table 2 (66.955 kgCO2eqha-1).
https://hau.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/17326/