![]() ![]() In the chart, I’ve shown the greenhouse gas emissions of a range of meat substitutes compared to meats, dairy, and plant products. I’ve tried to make sure that the analyses are comparable: the stages of the life cycle that are included need to be the same, and match the life cycles used for meat and dairy products. I’ve included full details of these analyses at the end of this post. ![]() To do this, we compare them using life-cycle analyses (LCAs): these include not only the impacts on the farm, but also raw materials used for their production, processing, packaging, transport, and distribution.įor meat substitutes, I’ve built a database using publicly available LCAs. To compare the carbon footprint of different foods fairly we need to look at their impact across the entire supply chain. The main takeaway from the data is that most meat substitutes have a lower carbon footprint than meat, and much lower than beef or lamb. This is a live and imperfect dataset that I’ve built from publicly available analyses: if you know of other meat substitute products that should be included, then let me know. The sources and methodologies for each are given at the end of the post. There was certainly no centralised dataset that brought them together. But I struggled to find many comparisons based on solid data. I thought it would be easy to find a clear answer. Or chicken for Quorn© chicken pieces.īut are they really better for the climate? They’re usually processed, need energy from manufacturing, and include ingredients that have been shipped from overseas. ![]() Swap a beefburger for an Impossible Burger ®. Meat substitutes let people reduce the impact of their diet without radical changes to the meals that they eat. But people eat meat for other reasons: for the taste the texture and their familiarity with particular meals. They could switch to plant protein food such as beans, peas, and lentils. 1 Polling data from the UK suggests that nearly half (44%) of consumers try to buy less meat “All the time” or “Fairly often”. Lots of consumers say that they’re trying. Eating less meat and dairy is one of the most effective things that someone can do to cut their carbon footprint. ![]()
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