Better Ideas

What collective practices related to systems of meat production can mitigate some of these issues?

What is your Dinner doing to the Climate?

Bijal Trivedi, New Scientist Magazine (Media—Research)

(New Scientist graphic, per Weber & Matthews.
Note error: transport is all transport)

Possible reductions in the beef industry's footprint, the authors suggest, include better waste management and shortening the interval between calving by one month. This latter measure could reduce the total environmental load by nearly 6 per cent. A Swedish study in 2003 suggested that organic beef, raised on grass rather than concentrated feed, emits 40% less greenhouse gases and consumes 85 per cent less energy.

Food Miles and Relative Climate Impacts of Food Choices in the United States

Weber & Matthews, Carnegie Mellon Univ, in Environmental Science & Technology (Academia—Research)

This life-cycle assessment (LCA) Policy Analysis, of "Food-Miles" compared GHG emissions from transporting food, to GHG emissions generated in food production.  The study found that food production comprises most of the emissions (83%), when weighed against transport costs in emissions (11%), and that there is only a 4% GHG impact between producer and retail outlets. The assessment found  that food groups exhibit a wide range in GHG-intensity; on average, red meat is around 150% more GHG-intensive than chicken or fish.

Comparison – Diets for a Cool Planet

Vital Systems (Sustainability Advocacy—Research)

1. No red meat for one meal/week
2. No red meat for one day/week
3. Animal or Vegetable? - no red meat at all
4. Less ... period
5. More background on greenhouse gases and food production
6. Carbon and Food Groups

Assess the Ecological/Social Footprint of a Company's Supply Chain

Jacob Park, presentation at the International Working Group's Supply Chain Working Session at SRI in the Rockies, 2008, Whistler, Canada (Academia—Business—Research)

Dr. Park's presentation piece is a good conversation starter for agricultural companies seeking to perform an Environmental and Social Footprint of their supply chains as a step in instituting supply chain management practices.

Poultry Sector Should Promote Its Green Credentials

Lucy Knowles and Wendy Short, Farmers Weekly (Media—Business—Marketing)

 

 

UK poultry production is responsible for the emission of the equivalent of about 400,000 tons of CO₂ annually. Improving efficiency can help producers' bottom line, and at least one UK egg packer is taking advantage of consumer interest by marketing a low-carbon egg brand, Respectful Eggs.

PAS 2050 Guidelines

BSI Standards Solutions for British Government (Government—Standards)

British government standards are the leading specification for the quantification of carbon footprints of products. Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2050, covers "Assessing the Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Goods and Services".

Locavore's Dilemma

Paul Rauber, Sierra Magazine (Media—Sustainability Advocacy)

Venison: Free Range, Organic, and Cost Saving

Kelly Leahy, Green Daily (Media—Sustainability Advocacy)

 

Rustle up some low-carbon deer?

 

Food that Travels Well

James E. McWilliams, New York Times (Media—Sustainability Advocacy)

Food miles alone do not tell the full story about the environmental costs of food.

Henning Wagenbreth

Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company