Why Global Climate Targets Should Include a Move Away From Meat

In 2016, the Paris Agreement laid out its main goal: to strengthen the global response to the climate crisis and keep temperature increases well below 1.5 degrees celsius. For the first time, the climate emergency was recognized on the global stage, as, well, an emergency.

Four years on, and we can all agree that the world looks like a very different place. But, alongside COVID-19, the climate crisis remains one of our biggest challenges. Despite the many bleak reports that surround the topic, progress seems to be happening. Countries are making big promises, and companies are making big changes.

China, Japan, and South Korea Pledge to Reach Net-Zero

Chinese president Xi Jinping revealed to the UN General Assembly in September (via video chat) that China intends to be carbon neutral before 2060. Responsible for around 28 percent of global emissions, China currently emits more greenhouse gases than any other country in the world. So, needless to say, this announcement is hugely significant.

If the country was to become carbon neutral, it would reduce global warming projections by 0.2 to 0.3 degrees celsius. According to the Climate Action Tracker, this is the biggest single reduction ever estimated.

Niklas H?hne of the NewClimate Institute for Climate Policy and Global Sustainability said of Jinping’s announcement: “This is the most important announcement on global climate policy in at least the last five years.”

He added: “This would mean that China, responsible for a quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, would phase out conventional use of coal, oil, and gas by the middle of the century, unthinkable a few years ago.”

While Jinping didn’t lay out exactly how China is going to achieve its 2060 target, some of the country’s top climate scientists have stated that renewable energy will play a huge role. It’s an industry in which China is the biggest investor, as well as the biggest producer and consumer.

For a country that currently burns half of the world’s coal, the pledge is truly groundbreaking. And in more good news, China isn’t the only major economy in Asia that has recently made big promises on curbing emissions.

At the end of October, Japan’s new prime minister Suga Yoshihide revealed that the world’s third-biggest economy would aim to reach net-zero by 2050, a decade before China.

As of yet, no clear roadmap for achieving this target has been announced, but, like China, it’s expected that a shift to renewable energy will be the focus. In his announcement, Suga made a promise to “fundamentally change Japan’s long-term reliance on coal-fired energy.”

South Korea has also pledged to reach carbon neutral by 2050. Again, a shift to renewables will take center stage. At the moment, the country relies on coal for around 40 percent of its electricity, so the pledge is beyond significant. Jude Lee of Greenpeace East Asia said the declaration was “another important step forward.”

They added: “We expect that this important pledge leads the Korean industry to swiftly shift from fossil fuels to a 100 percent renewables-based system.”

In an age where we have all become used to hearing bad news about the planet, the announcements certainly give me a ray of hope. 

Transforming the Food System to Reduce Emissions

Without downplaying the importance of renewable energy, I believe that transforming the food industry should be just high up on the list of priorities when it comes to reaching net-zero. According to the United Nations, 14.5% of global emissions can be attributed to the livestock industry.

Around the world, meat consumption is growing. Without a doubt, the West is the worst offender. The average American eats around 219 pounds of meat per year, and consumers in Western Europe eat between 80 and 90 kilograms per person per year.

But in the East, meat consumption is rising too.

By 2023, the total sales volume of meat in South Korea is expected to increase by up to 2.63 million tons. And in Japan, consumers are swapping their traditional fish-based diets for more meat. Chicken, in particular, is growing in popularity, thanks, in part, to KFC (a much-loved Christmas treat in the country).

By 2030, reports state that the average person’s meat consumption in China could increase by more than 60 pounds. This could release roughly another 233 million tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere per year.

The Chinese government has called for meat reductions in the past. In 2016, it released guidelines advising consumers to cut consumption by 50 percent. If followed, they would reduce the livestock industry’s emissions by one billion tonnes by 2030.

With that in mind, an updated push on reducing meat consumption across all major economies is essential. 

Europe’s Green New Deal

At the end of last year, the European Commission presented the Green New Deal; a roadmap to carbon neutrality across the European Union by 2050.

The deal does include reference to the food system. In May 2020, the Farm to Fork strategy was introduced as a way to create “a new and better balance of nature, food systems, and biodiversity.”

It lists creating a “food environment that makes the healthy and sustainable choice the easy choice” as a key next step, and notes that a healthy plant-based diet reduces the risk of disease and “the environmental impact of our food system.”

In the EU, farm animals produce more emissions than cars and vans combined. In 2018, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization revealed that the EU’s livestock industry emitted around 704 million tonnes of CO2 per year.

So it is perplexing that a proposal was recently on the table to ban the use of terms like “burger” and “sausage” on plant-based product labels. The plans were rejected, which was a victory. However, the majority of MEPs did vote in favor of a ban on dairy associated terms including “cheese-style” and “butter alternative.”

The move only hinders the messaging around sustainable plant-based food that Farm to Fork is trying to pedal.

Jasmijn De Boo, the vice president of international food awareness nonprofit ProVeg International, said in a statement: “We deeply regret [the European Parliament’s] vote in favor of far-reaching and entirely unnecessary restrictions on the descriptions of plant-based dairy products.”

She added: “The Farm to Fork Strategy explicitly states the need to empower consumers ‘to choose sustainable food’ and to make ‘it easier to choose healthy and sustainable diets.’”

Business As a Force for Sustainable Change

I am inspired by the carbon neutrality targets laid out in China, Japan, South Korea, and the EU. If achieved, they will make a phenomenal impact. But if we are going to have a real chance of reducing our impact on the planet and tackling some of our biggest environmental problems, we must all be aligned on the food industry.

Where governments lack, I believe business can play a significant role.

At The LIVEKINDLY Collective, we have three strong alternative protein brands, each offering consumers more sustainable, ethical, and healthier food choices. We have a team of mission-aligned investors behind us, and recently, we received $135 million in additional funding to expand into the U.S.

The country has not made any big commitments to reducing carbon emissions. And while the upcoming election could change that (presidential candidate Joe Biden has a $2 trillion climate plan that would put the U.S. on a path to net-zero by 2050), at the moment, real change is down to big business doing the right thing.

Walmart, the biggest retailer in the U.S. and the world, is trying to do better. It has set out its own carbon neutrality goals, and by 2040, it aims to be net zero.

The chain announced the target during Climate Week NYC, a climate summit that takes place annually alongside the UN General Assembly. By 2030, it also aims to protect, manage, or restore 50 millions acres of land and one million square miles of ocean.

Helen Clarkson, CEO of the Climate Group, labelled Walmart’s commitment as “monumentous.” She said: “This is exactly the level of ambition we need to see across the board. It shows that in spite of the pandemic, business commitment to tackling climate change can and will remain on the agenda.”

While Walmart’s pledge focuses on powering its facilities with renewable energy, changing its vehicles to be 100 percent electric, and using low-impact cooling and heating, altering the products on its shelves could make a significant difference to its environmental impact.

It’s already started embracing plant-based protein. In September, it tripled its distribution of Beyond Burgers. Now, the sustainable patties are available at more than 2,400 Walmart stores across the U.S.

Major corporations are taking steps in Europe and China too.

More than 400 McDonald’s restaurants, in Hong Kong and Macau, have launched vegetarian options using OmniPork Luncheon, which is, essentially, a plant-based alternative to SPAM. The fast food giant also offers plant-based options in a number of European locations, including Germany, Sweden, and Finland.

Recently, KFC China announced it would be running a three-week limited edition launch of the Beyond Burger. In the Netherlands, the fast food joint took chicken off the menu completely for a whole week in February. In honour of the country’s National Week Without Meat, alternative protein was served instead.

The LIVEKINDLY Collective already has a wide variety of climate-friendly plant-based products available across Europe, and we’re keen to expand into the U.S. and China as soon as possible.

I firmly believe that alternative protein can—and should—be a part of the solution to achieving major climate goals. Simply put, governments and businesses must work together to build a food system that helps reduce emissions and not contribute to them.