KATHMANDU, Nepal–Healthier diets are not only important to ascertain food security and people’s health, but also to ward off dangerous climate change, a new British research published in the scientific journal Nature Climate revealed.
The study by Cambridge and Aberdeen universities disclosed that if current trends go on, food production alone will reach the global targets for total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2050.
As populations rise and global tastes shift towards meat-heavy “Western diets,” increasing agricultural production will not meet planned food demands, making it necessary to bring more land into cultivation, according to the authors.
As a result, deforestation will increase carbon emissions as well as biodiversity loss, and increased livestock production will raise methane levels. They argue that current food demand trends must change through reducing waste and encouraging balanced diets.