The Briefing Room - Climate change and meat: what's the beef?

Download Climate change and meat: what's the beef?

Would cutting back on meat consumption help tackle climate change?

What impact would this have on individuals, governments and businesses? Livestock farming accounts for at least 14.5% of all human emissions - with beef making up the highest proportion of this.

Meat free burgers are now available at fast food restaurants across the western world; veganism is on the rise, as is flexitarianism - a largely vegetable-based diet supplemented occasionally with meat. But how far can these eating trends help to reduce carbon emissions?

David Aaronovitch is joined by:

Dr Hannah Richie - Head of Research at Our world in data, University of Oxford
Tim Searchinger - Senior Fellow, World Resources Institute and Princeton University
Professor Louise Fresco - President of the Wageningen University
Laura Wellesley - Research fellow in the Energy, Environment and Resources Department at Chatham House
Toby Park - Head of Energy and Sustainability, Behavioural Insights Team

Producer: Serena Tarling
Editor: Jasper Corbett

Published on Thursday, 10th October 2019.

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