Eat a diet of less meat to avoid loss of natural habitats, study urges

ALMOST 90 per cent of species will lose some of their habitats to agriculture by 2050 unless we eat less meat, a study has predicted.

Researchers at the University of Leeds examined the global food system and its impact on the habitats of 20,000 species of mammal, bird, and amphibian, concluding that 88 per cent of them would lose part of their habitat by 2050.

If nothing changes, almost 1,300 species are likely to lose at least a quarter of their remaining habitat, and hundreds could lose at least half, putting them at greater risk of extinction, the authors said in the paper, published in the journal Nature Sustainability.

Under a scenario where the world cuts down on food waste, improves yields and land planning, and people make dietary changes in places with high calorie and animal product consumption, this could fall to just 33 species, with 82 per cent losing at least some of their habitat. While diets would be the most important shift in America and Europe, improving yields, and cutting down on waste would be the most effective intervention in other parts of the world, such as in sub-saharan Africa.

Lead author Dr David Williams, from the School of Earth and Environment at the University of Leeds, said that British agricultural knowledge and expertise could be shared abroad to help achieve this.

“We’re really good at agriculture, and we’re really good at higher education and outreach. There’s a massive role for us to help other countries improve their agriculture,” he said.

“As a global picture, I think that improving agricultural yields in subSaharan Africa is one of the most import a nt t hi ngs we can do f or t he environment.”

It was almost inevitable that a high proportion of species would lose at least some of their habitats, Dr Williams added, but losing a small amount would be much less damaging than losing a quarter or more.

The worst-affected regions were in sub-saharan Africa, particularly the Rift Valley in east Africa, and tropical regions of West Africa.

Biodiversity in the UK was less badly affected as it had fewer species not found anywhere else, and had already suffered significant biodiversity loss due to long-term intensive agriculture, said Dr Williams.

Earlier this year the National Audit Office said people would have to be encouraged to drive electric cars and eat less meat if the UK was to meet its climate goals.

The World Wide Fund for Nature has also claimed that switching the UK to veganism would halve biodiversity loss from the food industry.