Meat-free world would devastate the environment, say scientists
The UK leads the world in producing good quality food in a sustainable way. This needs to be protected
MEAT is crucial for feeding the planet, leading scientists have said, as they warned it was not more environmentally friendly to go vegan.
Experts from the University of Edinburgh and Scotland’s Rural College said farmers were increasingly demonised by unsubstantiated “meat is evil” claims being promoted by environmental lobbyists. Speaking at a panel in central London, they argued that meat was critical for the physical and mental health of children, particularly in developing countries, and that moving away from livestock farming would not improve land use.
Prof Geoff Simm, director of the Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Security at the University of
Edinburgh, said: “I think (livestock farmers) do feel they are being demonised. Often the argument is made that going vegan would minimise land use, and the modelling studies that have been done demonstrate that that’s not the case.
“We feel that while livestock production has a range of economic, social and environmental costs and benefits, the costs have perhaps been receiving far more attention recently than some of the benefits. Meat has massive social benefits. It’s an important source of dietary protein, energy and highly bioavailable micronutrients.
“Even small amounts of animalsourced food have an important effect on the development of children, not least in the developing world on their cognitive and physical development.”
Prof Mike Coffey, from Scotland’s
Rural College, added: “It’s completely unnecessary to go vegan. If everybody went vegan it would be devastating for the UK environment. Animals bred for food help boost biodiversity.”
Prof Coffey said if all UK farmers used the most efficient animals who emited the least methane, carbon emissions could be reduced by nearly a third. Professor Andrea Wilson, also of Edinburgh University, said that more research was needed into the impact of veganism.
She added: “We know a lot about the livestock sector because people have looked at it. We actually know very little about the vegan sector.
“The danger is we demonise one and jump too quickly to the other.”
For generations the land I farm in Wiltshire has been grazed by sheep and cattle, producing some of the most climate-friendly meat in the world from Britain’s extensive grasslands. I am not unusual in this.
So you can imagine my reaction when I tuned into the BBC’S documentary this week Meat: A Threat to Our Planet? to see UK methods of production not only being overlooked, but by implication tarred with the same brush as the most extreme and intensive meat production systems in the world.
This programme, watched by millions, showed farming which would be illegal in Britain. It implied that all meat production throughout the world has the same dangerous environmental consequences, while ignoring the sustainable farming methods of thousands of farmers in this country.
I want to make clear that this documentary absolutely does not represent what British farmers and agriculture stand for. British farmers do not clear rainforest to make way for beef and lamb production. British meat does not come from the ashes of the Amazon.
Our farmers produce some of the most sustainable food in the world and it is deeply frustrating that it was not recognised in flagship programming by our national broadcaster. Such a slanted view of agriculture is not only inaccurate, it is also deeply unhelpful when it comes to the shared global goal of tackling climate change.
Instead of an honest appraisal, we had the presenter telling us about how she will now be reducing her meat consumption and cutting out red meat completely on the basis of what she saw in another part of the world. Focusing on meat production on another continent does nothing to help British people make informed choices about food that can be grown and reared in ways that benefit the environment.
If viewers were to follow her lead, they would be likely to cut out sustainable British meat while making no difference to saving the rainforest. This would have a massive impact on farmers in the UK, who have the environment at the core of what they do.
We are one of the only farming communities to have an aspiration to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2040, which we intend to do by improving productivity and recognising the unique role farms have to play in capturing carbon and providing renewable energy.
Here in this country we have extensive grasslands that, although generally unsuitable for growing crops, are perfect for grazing livestock; turning inedible grass into high-quality, nutritious protein. They are also an important tool in farmers’ fight against climate change as they store a significant amount of carbon.
But none of that was mentioned by the BBC. Despite offers, there was no representation from mainstream British farming.
What this documentary did achieve was to demonstrate what we could expect to see on supermarket
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shelves if any future trade deal allows food into Britain which has been produced in ways that would be illegal here. For me it is simple. Our world-leading standards of environmental protection and animal welfare must under no circumstances be sacrificed. All food imports must meet the standards required of UK farmers.
This is something we know the public feel incredibly strongly about and we cannot have food coming into the country that betrays the values we stand for.
Sub-standard food that would be illegal to produce here would undercut our farmers who are working so hard to produce sustainable food for the nation.
The BBC’S documentary was hard-hitting when it came to livestock production in certain parts of the world, but the British people can be assured that we farm with a conscience.
What’s more, we aren’t resting on our laurels, but have an ambition to do more and lead the world when it comes to sustainable farming. Not every country can say the same.