Meat Consumption Impacting the Environment

From Compassion in World Farming a group based in the UK advocating against Factory Farms.

Lecture calls for massive dietary change
Ground-breaking Compassion in World Farming event highlights the damaging impact of factory farming on climate change, the environment and animal welfare.

Dr Pachauri delivers his lecture
On Mon 8 September, over 400 people from government, embassies, think- tanks and research bodies packed into Savoy Place for the Peter Roberts Memorial lecture, named after the founder of Compassion in World Farming.

The lecture, entitled "Global Warning - The impact of meat production and consumption on climate change" was given by Dr Rajendra Pachauri, Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Dr Pachauri challenged our reliance on high meat consumption, showing how livestock production releases 18% of our global greenhouse gas emissions, can pollute water and soils, damages our health and often causes suffering to animals kept in factory farms.

He said, “One kilo of beef is responsible for the equivalent of the amount of CO2 emitted by the average European car for every 250 kms”

Referring to the inefficiency of livestock production, he pointed out that: “A farmer can feed up to 30 persons throughout the year on one hectare with vegetables, fruits, cereals and vegetable fats. If the same area is used for the production of eggs, milk or meat the number of persons fed varies from five to ten.”

To watch the video and download a Powerpoint presentation of this click here