Soya milk production hurts planet, study finds
LONDON • Vegans should stop drinking soya milk in order to save the rainforest, the British-based Sustainable Food Trust says.
A report from the trust argues that milk from cows — especially cows traditionally grazed on grass — is much better for a sustainable planet.
The global consumption of soya products has been rising, but many are produced on deforested land with the Amazon rainforest suffering great losses due to soya production.
However, the report adds that livestock is frequently fed with soya, and accounts for a large part of the profitability of the “unsustainable” soya industry. The U.K. suffers less from this than other countries because it has lush grassland for cows to feed on.
The authors calculate about 85 litres of milk are produced in the U.K. for every kilo of soya bean meal consumed by dairy cows. In contrast, no more than 7.5 litres of soya drink are produced from a kilo of whole soya beans.
As a result, drinking milk from cows in the U.K. uses 11 times less soya than consuming drinks made from soya.
“Vegans and others who buy milk substitutes made from soya for their latte and cappuccino, or breakfast cereal, are also harming the planet. They would do better to switch to milk from cows, and especially cows traditionally grazed on grass, if they want to help make a more sustainable planet,” the report states.
Patrick Holden, the trust’s executive, said: “This is an important study. It shows that livestock farmers could reduce their dependence on imported protein, which is produced at such a high environmental cost, and rely more on home-produced feed.
“But it also shows that drinking cows’ milk uses far less soya than drinks made from soya, because most of the milk comes from grass. This highlights the importance of grass, a crop ideally suited to our climate.”
The British government recently revealed it is looking into ways to remove products derived from deforestation from the supply chain.
This could mean switching away from a reliance on soya.