By Celsias team
Posted on June 4, 2010. Listed in:
Lovers of lentils and other pulses have yet another justification for their ‘inconvenient’ non-meat eating ways.
A major new report by the UN’s International Panel on Sustainable Resource Management says that a worldwide switch to a more vegetarian diet is needed if the planet is to continue feeding its growing number of inhabitants while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Food production and the use of fossil fuels are currently the greatest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, with agricultural production accounting for 19 percent of total emissions. The report said that while energy could be gradually reduced with renewable sources, the world still had to eat – with the potential for the production of food likely to become the main cause of climate change.
UN Environment Programme executive director Achim Steiner said Government-led price mechanisms were needed to drive the switch to vegetarian eating, reported the Telegraph.
"The Panel have reviewed all the available science and conclude that two broad areas are currently having a disproportionately high impact on people and the planet's life support systems—these are energy in the form of fossil fuels and agriculture, especially the raising of livestock for meat and dairy products," he said.
Mr Steiner said governments could encourage people to eat less meat by reforming the system of taxes and subsidies so vegetarian food is cheaper.
"Smart market mechanisms, more intelligent fiscal policies and creative policy-making are among the options for internalising the costs of unsustainable patterns. Some tough choices are signalled in this report, but it may prove even more challenging for everyone if the current paths continue into the coming decades," he added.
Image: Mzelle Biscotte
