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To limit global warming, the USA should reduce meat consumption by 82%

From fried chicken wings to meatloaf to burgers, meat is an integral part of American food culture, but that's not without consequence for the environment. To reduce this impact, the USA would need to cut its meat consumption by 82%, according to a report by the NGO CIWF.

Whether it's corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, or cattle and pig farming, the United States is the world's leading exporter of agricultural products. The country covers an area of 9.8 million sq km, but its usable agricultural area -- ie, the land devoted to cultivating crops and livestock -- is 3.6 million sq km, twice that of the European Union, according to figures from the French Ministry of Agriculture. More than two million farms, mainly family-run, contribute to this sector, which is of colossal importance to the US economy and which helps keep Americans fed.

From Turkey at Thanksgiving to burgers, meatloaf and more, animal proteins are legion in traditional American recipes. Indeed, the United States is the world's biggest meat-eating nation on a per capita basis, with people consuming 233.3 g per day. A survey carried out in May and reported by the magazine Newsweek found that 81% of Americans eat meat at least once a week. Some 41% of meat-eaters are of the opinion that it's healthy to eat meat. The same proportion (40%) also fail to see the environmental problem posed by their diet, since they reject the idea that a reduction in meat consumption could reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

However, in a recently published report, the NGO Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) gives a surprising figure: the USA would need to reduce its meat and poultry consumption by 82% for the fight to limit global warming to become effective, based on the EAT-Lancet Commission's model diet, optimized for human health and the health of the planet. The NGO claims the United States consumes twice the amount of meat as the entire African continent

The issue is all the more pressing in view of the fact that the world's meat consumption is set to continue rising. In a report detailing agricultural forecasts for 2021-2030, the OECD estimates that meat consumption will increase by 14% by 2030, requiring 4% more farmland. But it's not so much that we'll be eating more burgers or beef steaks, but more poultry meat. The European organization states that more than half of this increase is due to the rise in per capita consumption of poultry meat.

Yet the environmental consequences of food production are dramatic, and have already been quantified. On a global scale, experts consider that the food system is responsible for 27% of greenhouse gas emissions. As well as the production of meat and dairy products, another factor is the land farmed to feed livestock, monopolizing some 80% of the world's agricultural land.

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