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Food Production Affects Global Warming

(“Fair Use”guidelines don’t protect us completely -we hope that the original publishers of these related articles will not begrudge us the use of them. All of the links to original source material were working as of 11/09/2009.)

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OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR

The Carnivore’s Dilemma
By NICOLETTE HAHN NIMAN
Published:October 30,2009
Bolinas,Calif.

Emma Houlston
Times Topics: Factory Farming

IS eating a hamburger the global warming equivalent of driving a Hummer? This week an article in The Times of London carried a headline that blared:“Give Up Meat to Save the Planet.” Former Vice President Al Gore,who has made climate change his signature issue,has even been assailed for omnivorous eating by animal rights activists.

It’s true that food production is an important contributor to climate change. And the claim that meat (especially beef) is closely linked to global warming has received some credible backing,including by the United Nations and University of Chicago. Both institutions have issued reports that have been widely summarized as condemning meat-eating.

But that’s an overly simplistic conclusion to draw from the research. To a rancher like me,who raises cattle,goats and turkeys the traditional way (on grass),the studies show only that the prevailing methods of producing meat — that is,crowding animals together in factory farms,storing their waste in giant lagoons and cutting down forests to grow crops to feed them — cause substantial greenhouse gases. It could be,in fact,that a conscientious meat eater may have a more environmentally friendly diet than your average vegetarian.

So what is the real story of meat’s connection to global warming? Answering the question requires examining the individual greenhouse gases involved:carbon dioxide,methane and nitrous oxides.

Carbon dioxide makes up the majority of agriculture-related greenhouse emissions. In American farming,most carbon dioxide emissions come from fuel burned to operate vehicles and equipment. World agricultural carbon emissions,on the other hand,result primarily from the clearing of woods for crop growing and livestock grazing. During the 1990s,tropical deforestation in Brazil,India,Indonesia,Sudan and other developing countries caused 15 percent to 35 percent of annual global fossil fuel emissions.

Much Brazilian deforestation is connected to soybean cultivation. As much as 70 percent of areas newly cleared for agriculture in Mato Grosso State in Brazil is being used to grow soybeans. Over half of Brazil’s soy harvest is controlled by a handful of international agribusiness companies,which ship it all over the world for animal feed and food products,causing emissions in the process.

Meat and dairy eaters need not be part of this. Many smaller,traditional farms and ranches in the United States have scant connection to carbon dioxide emissions because they keep their animals outdoors on pasture and make little use of machinery. Moreover,those farmers generally use less soy than industrial operations do,and those who do often grow their own,so there are no emissions from long-distance transport and zero chance their farms contributed to deforestation in the developing world.

In contrast to traditional farms,industrial livestock and poultry facilities keep animals in buildings with mechanized systems for feeding,lighting,sewage flushing,ventilation,heating and cooling,all of which generate emissions. These factory farms are also soy guzzlers and acquire much of their feed overseas. You can reduce your contribution to carbon dioxide emissions by avoiding industrially produced meat and dairy products.

Unfortunately for vegetarians who rely on it for protein,avoiding soy from deforested croplands may be more difficult:as the Organic Consumers Association notes,Brazilian soy is common (and unlabeled) in tofu and soymilk sold in American supermarkets.

Methane is agriculture’s second-largest greenhouse gas. Wetland rice fields alone account for as much 29 percent of the world’s human-generated methane. In animal farming,much of the methane comes from lagoons of liquefied manure at industrial facilities,which are as nauseating as they sound.

This isn’t a problem at traditional farms. “Before the 1970s,methane emissions from manure were minimal because the majority of livestock farms in the U.S. were small operations where animals deposited manure in pastures and corrals,” the Environmental Protection Agency says. The E.P.A. found that with the rapid rise of factory farms,liquefied manure systems became the norm and methane emissions skyrocketed. You can reduce your methane emissions by seeking out meat from animals raised outdoors on traditional farms.

CRITICS of meat-eating often point out that cattle are prime culprits in methane production. Fortunately,the cause of these methane emissions is understood,and their production can be reduced.

Much of the problem arises when livestock eat poor quality forages,throwing their digestive systems out of balance. Livestock nutrition experts have demonstrated that by making minor improvements in animal diets (like providing nutrient-laden salt licks) they can cut enteric methane by half. Other practices,like adding certain proteins to ruminant diets,can reduce methane production per unit of milk or meat by a factor of six,according to research at Australia’s University of New England. Enteric methane emissions can also be substantially reduced when cattle are regularly rotated onto fresh pastures,researchers at University of Louisiana have confirmed.

Finally,livestock farming plays a role in nitrous oxide emissions,which make up around 5 percent of this country’s total greenhouse gases. More than three-quarters of farming’s nitrous oxide emissions result from manmade fertilizers. Thus,you can reduce nitrous oxide emissions by buying meat and dairy products from animals that were not fed fertilized crops — in other words,from animals raised on grass or raised organically.

In contrast to factory farming,well-managed,non-industrialized animal farming minimizes greenhouse gases and can even benefit the environment. For example,properly timed cattle grazing can increase vegetation by as much as 45 percent,North Dakota State University researchers have found. And grazing by large herbivores (including cattle) is essential for well-functioning prairie ecosystems,research at Kansas State University has determined.

Additionally,several recent studies show that pasture and grassland areas used for livestock reduce global warming by acting as carbon sinks. Converting croplands to pasture,which reduces erosion,effectively sequesters significant amounts of carbon. One analysis published in the journal Global Change Biology showed a 19 percent increase in soil carbon after land changed from cropland to pasture. What’s more,animal grazing reduces the need for the fertilizers and fuel used by farm machinery in crop cultivation,things that aggravate climate change.

Livestock grazing has other noteworthy environmental benefits as well. Compared to cropland,perennial pastures used for grazing can decrease soil erosion by 80 percent and markedly improve water quality,Minnesota’s Land Stewardship Project research has found. Even the United Nations report acknowledges,“There is growing evidence that both cattle ranching and pastoralism can have positive impacts on biodiversity.”

As the contrast between the environmental impact of traditional farming and industrial farming shows,efforts to minimize greenhouse gases need to be much more sophisticated than just making blanket condemnations of certain foods. Farming methods vary tremendously,leading to widely variable global warming contributions for every food we eat. Recent research in Sweden shows that,depending on how and where a food is produced,its carbon dioxide emissions vary by a factor of 10.

And it should also be noted that farmers bear only a portion of the blame for greenhouse gas emissions in the food system. Only about one-fifth of the food system’s energy use is farm-related,according to University of Wisconsin research. And the Soil Association in Britain estimates that only half of food’s total greenhouse impact has any connection to farms. The rest comes from processing,transportation,storage,retailing and food preparation. The seemingly innocent potato chip,for instance,turns out to be a dreadfully climate-hostile food. Foods that are minimally processed,in season and locally grown,like those available at farmers’ markets and backyard gardens,are generally the most climate-friendly.

Rampant waste at the processing,retail and household stages compounds the problem. About half of the food produced in the United States is thrown away,according to University of Arizona research. Thus,a consumer could measurably reduce personal global warming impact simply by more judicious grocery purchasing and use.

None of us,whether we are vegan or omnivore,can entirely avoid foods that play a role in global warming. Singling out meat is misleading and unhelpful,especially since few people are likely to entirely abandon animal-based foods. Mr. Gore,for one,apparently has no intention of going vegan. The 90 percent of Americans who eat meat and dairy are likely to respond the same way.

Still,there are numerous reasonable ways to reduce our individual contributions to climate change through our food choices. Because it takes more resources to produce meat and dairy than,say,fresh locally grown carrots,it’s sensible to cut back on consumption of animal-based foods. More important,all eaters can lower their global warming contribution by following these simple rules:avoid processed foods and those from industrialized farms;reduce food waste;and buy local and in season.

Nicolette Hahn Niman,a lawyer and livestock rancher,is the author of “Righteous Porkchop:Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms.”

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=====Eating Less…

Cornell Chronicle Online
Aug. 11,2008
Eating less,eating local and eating better could slash U.S. energy use,CU study finds

How much energy we use to produce food could be cut in half if Americans ate less and ate local foods,wolfed down less meat,dairy and junk food,and used more traditional farming methods,says a new Cornell study.

“We could reduce the fossil energy used in the U.S. food system by about 50 percent with relatively simple changes in how we produce,process,package,transport and consume our food,”said David Pimentel,professor emeritus of ecology and agriculture in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell.

Pimentel’s analysis,co-authored with five former Cornell undergraduates who were in Pimentel’s Environmental Policy course in 2006,is published in the academic journal Human Ecology.

Pimentel says that about 19 percent of the total fossil fuel used in this country goes into the food system —about the same amount we use to fuel cars. His analysis details how changes in the food system could reduce energy.

For example,the researchers recommend:

  • Eat less and cut down on junk food:To produce the typical American diet requires the equivalent of about 500 gallons of oil per year per person,says the study. Americans,on average,consume about 50 percent more calories than recommended by the federal government for optimal health and get one-third of their calories from junk food. Eating less and cutting down on junk food would use significantly less energy,considering all the processing,packaging and transportation costs saved.
  • Eat less meat and dairy:We use 45 million tons of plant protein to produce 7.5 million tons of animal protein per year,according to Pimentel. Switching to a vegetarian diet,he says,would require one-third less fossil fuel than producing the current animal-based American diet.
  • Eat more locally grown food:Food travels an average of 1,500 miles before it is eaten. “This requires 1.4 times the energy than the energy in the food,”Pimentel said. A head of iceberg lettuce,for example,which is 95 percent water,provides 110 calories and few nutrients. Irrigating the lettuce in California takes 750 calories of fossil energy and shipping it to New York another 4,000 calories of energy per head,according to the analysis. Locally grown cabbage,on the other hand,requires only 400 calories to produce and offers far more nutrients,not to mention it can be stored all winter long.
  • Use more traditional farming methods:Pimentel’s team also shows how using methods to reduce soil erosion,irrigation and pesticide use,through such things as crop rotation,manure and cover crops,could cut the total energy now used in crop production.

The study’s co-authors are Sean Williamson,Courtney Alexander,Omar Gonzalez-Pagan,Caitlin Kontak and Steven Mulkey,all Cornell Class of 2007.

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===== Putting Meat On the Table…

Meat on the Table:Industrial Farm Animal Production in America

Putting Meat on the Table:Industrial Farm Animal Production in America

Apr 29,2008 (from The Pew Charitable Trusts)

Over the last 50 years,the method of producing food animals in the United States has changed from the extensive system of small and medium-sized farms owned by a single family to a system of large,intensive operations where the animals are housed in large numbers in enclosed structures that resemble industrial buildings more than they do a traditional barn. That change has happened primarily out of view of consumers but has come at a cost to the environment and a negative impact on public health,rural communities,and the health and well-being of the animals themselves.

The Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production (PCIFAP) was funded by a grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to investigate the problems associated with industrial farm animal production (IFAP) operations and to make recommendations to solve them. Fifteen Commissioners with diverse backgrounds began meeting in early 2006 to start their evidence-based review of the problems caused by IFAP.

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Scientific American Magazine -February 4,2009

How Meat Contributes to Global Warming

Producing beef for the table has a surprising environmental cost:
it releases prodigious amounts of heat-trapping greenhouse gases

By Nathan Fiala

Most of us are aware that our cars,our coal-generated electric power and even our cement factories adversely affect the environment. Until recently,however,the foods we eat had gotten a pass in the discussion. Yet according to a 2006 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),our diets and,specifically,the meat in them cause more greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2),methane,nitrous oxide,and the like to spew into the atmosphere than either transportation or industry. (Greenhouse gases trap solar energy,thereby warming the earth’s surface. Because gases vary in greenhouse potency,every greenhouse gas is usually expressed as an amount of CO2 with the same global-warming potential.)

The FAO report found that current production levels of meat contribute between 14 and 22 percent of the 36 billion tons of “CO2-equivalent”greenhouse gases the world produces every year. It turns out that producing half a pound of hamburger for someone’s lunch a patty of meat the size of two decks of cards releases as much greenhouse gas into the atmosphere as driving a 3,000-pound car nearly 10 miles.

In truth,every food we consume,vegetables and fruits included,incurs hidden environmental costs:transportation,refrigeration and fuel for farming,as well as methane emissions from plants and animals,all lead to a buildup of atmospheric greenhouse gases. Take asparagus:in a report prepared for the city of Seattle,Daniel J. Morgan of the University of Washington and his co-workers found that growing just half a pound of the vegetable in Peru emits greenhouse gases equivalent to 1.2 ounces of CO2 as a result of applying insecticide and fertilizer,pumping water and running heavy,gas-guzzling farm equipment. To refrigerate and transport the vegetable to an American dinner table generates another two ounces of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases,for a total CO2 equivalent of 3.2 ounces.

But that is nothing compared to beef. In 1999 Susan Subak,an ecological economist then at the University of East Anglia in England,found that,depending on the production method,cows emit between 2.5 and 4.7 ounces of methane for each pound of beef they produce. Because methane has roughly 23 times the global-warming potential of CO2,those emissions are the equivalent of releasing between 3.6 and 6.8 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere for each pound of beef produced.

Raising animals also requires a large amount of feed per unit of body weight. In 2003 Lucas Reijnders of the University of Amsterdam and Sam Soret of Loma Linda University estimated that producing a pound of beef protein for the table requires more than 10 pounds of plant protein with all the emissions of greenhouse gases that grain farming entails. Finally,farms for raising animals produce numerous wastes that give rise to greenhouse gases.

Taking such factors into account,Subak calculated that producing a pound of beef in a feedlot,or concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) system,generates the equivalent of 14.8 pounds of CO2 pound for pound,more than 36 times the CO2-equivalent greenhouse gas emitted by producing asparagus. Even other common meats cannot match the impact of beef;I estimate that producing a pound of pork generates the equivalent of 3.8 pounds of CO2;a pound of chicken generates 1.1 pounds of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases. And the economically efficient CAFO system,though certainly not the cleanest production method in terms of CO2-equivalent greenhouse emissions,is far better than most:the FAO data I noted earlier imply that the world average emissions from producing a pound of beef are several times the CAFO amount.

Solutions?
What can be done? Improving waste management and farming practices would certainly reduce the “carbon footprint”of beef production. Methane-capturing systems,for instance,can put cows’waste to use in generating electricity. But those systems remain too costly to be commercially viable.

Individuals,too,can reduce the effects of food production on planetary climate. To some degree,after all,our diets are a choice. By choosing more wisely,we can make a difference. Eating locally produced food,for instance,can reduce the need for transport though food inefficiently shipped in small batches on trucks from nearby farms can turn out to save surprisingly little in greenhouse emissions. And in the U.S. and the rest of the developed world,people could eat less meat,particularly beef.

The graphics on the following pages quantify the links between beef production and greenhouse gases in sobering detail. The take-home lesson is clear:we ought to give careful thought to diet and its consequences for the planet if we are serious about limiting the emissions of greenhouse gases.

Note:This article was originally printed with the title,“The Greenhouse Hamburger”.

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October 23,2009
By Degrees -(from The New York Times)

To Cut Global Warming,Swedes Study Their Plates

STOCKHOLM — Shopping for oatmeal,Helena Bergstrom,37,admitted that she was flummoxed by the label on the blue box reading,“Climate declared:.87 kg CO2 per kg of product.”

“Right now,I don’t know what this means,” said Ms. Bergstrom,a pharmaceutical company employee.

But if a new experiment here succeeds,she and millions of other Swedes will soon find out. New labels listing the carbon dioxide emissions associated with the production of foods,from whole wheat pasta to fast food burgers,are appearing on some grocery items and restaurant menus around the country.

People who live to eat might dismiss this as silly. But changing one’s diet can be as effective in reducing emissions of climate-changing gases as changing the car one drives or doing away with the clothes dryer,scientific experts say.

“We’re the first to do it,and it’s a new way of thinking for us,” said Ulf Bohman,head of the Nutrition Department at the Swedish National Food Administration,which was given the task last year of creating new food guidelines giving equal weight to climate and health. “We’re used to thinking about safety and nutrition as one thing and environmental as another.”

Some of the proposed new dietary guidelines,released over the summer,may seem startling to the uninitiated. They recommend that Swedes favor carrots over cucumbers and tomatoes,for example. (Unlike carrots,the latter two must be grown in heated greenhouses here,consuming energy.)

They are not counseled to eat more fish,despite the health benefits,because Europe’s stocks are depleted.

And somewhat less surprisingly,they are advised to substitute beans or chicken for red meat,in view of the heavy greenhouse gas emissions associated with raising cattle.

“For consumers,it’s hard,” Mr. Bohman acknowledged. “You are getting environmental advice that you have to coordinate with,‘How can I eat healthier?’ ”

Many Swedish diners say it is just too much to ask. “I wish I could say that the information has made me change what I eat,but it hasn’t,” said Richard Lalander,27,who was eating a Max hamburger (1.7 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions) in the shadow of a menu board revealing that a chicken sandwich (0.4 kilograms) would have been better for the planet.

Yet if the new food guidelines were religiously heeded,some experts say,Sweden could cut its emissions from food production by 20 to 50 percent. An estimated 25 percent of the emissions produced by people in industrialized nations can be traced to the food they eat,according to recent research here. And foods vary enormously in the emissions released in their production.

While today’s American or European shoppers may be well versed in checking for nutrients,calories or fat content,they often have little idea of whether eating tomatoes,chicken or rice is good or bad for the climate.

Complicating matters,the emissions impact of,say,a carrot,can vary by a factor of 10,depending how and where it is grown.

Earlier studies of food emissions focused on the high environmental costs of transporting food and raising cattle. But more nuanced research shows that the emissions depend on many factors,including the type of soil used to grow the food and whether a dairy farmer uses local rapeseed or imported soy for cattle feed.

Business groups,farming cooperatives and organic labeling programs as well as the government have gamely come up with coordinated ways to identify food choices.

Max,Sweden’s largest homegrown chain of burger restaurants,now puts emissions calculations next to each item on its menu boards. Lantmannen,Sweden’s largest farming group,has begun placing precise labels on some categories of foods in grocery stores,including chicken,oatmeal,barley and pasta.

Consumers who pay attention may learn that emissions generated by growing the nation’s most popular grain,rice,are two to three times those of little-used barley,for example.

Some producers argue that the new programs are overly complex and threaten profits. The dietary recommendations,which are being circulated for comment not just in Sweden but across the European Union,have been attacked by the Continent’s meat industry,Norwegian salmon farmers and Malaysian palm oil growers,to name a few.

“This is trial and error;we’re still trying to see what works,” Mr. Bohman said.

Next year,KRAV,Scandinavia’s main organic certification program,will start requiring farmers to convert to low-emissions techniques if they want to display its coveted seal on products,meaning that most greenhouse tomatoes can no longer be called organic.

Those standards have stirred some protests. “There are farmers who are happy and farmers who say they are being ruined,” said Johan Cejie,manager of climate issues for KRAV.

For example,he said,farmers with high concentrations of peat soil on their property may no longer be able to grow carrots,since plowing peat releases huge amounts of carbon dioxide;to get the organic label,they may have to switch to feed crops that require no plowing.

Next year KRAV will require hothouses to use biofuels for heating. Dairy farms will have to obtain at least 70 percent of the food for their herds locally;many previously imported cheap soy from Brazil,generating transport emissions and damaging the rain forest as trees were cleared to make way for farmland.

The Swedish effort grew out of a 2005 study by Sweden’s national environmental agency on how personal consumption generates emissions. Researchers found that 25 percent of national per capita emissions — two metric tons per year — was attributable to eating.

The government realized that encouraging a diet that tilted more toward chicken or vegetables and educating farmers on lowering emissions generally could have an enormous impact.

Sweden has been a world leader in finding new ways to reduce emissions. It has vowed to eliminate the use of fossil fuel for electricity by 2020 and cars that run on gasoline by 2030.

To arrive at numbers for their company’s first carbon dioxide labels,scientists at Lantmannen analyzed life cycles of 20 products. These take into account emissions generated by fertilizer,fuel for harvesting machinery,packaging and transport.

They decided to examine one representative product in each category — say,pasta — rather than performing analyses for fusilli versus penne,or one brand versus another. “Every climate declaration is hugely time-intensive,” said Claes Johansson,Lantmannen’s director of sustainability.

A new generation of Swedish business leaders is stepping up to the climate challenge. Richard Bergfors,president of Max,his family’s burger chain,voluntarily hired a consultant to calculate its carbon footprint;75 percent was created by its meat.

“We decided to be honest and put it all out there and say we’ll do everything we can to reduce,” said Mr. Bergfors,40. In addition to putting emissions data on the menu,Max eliminated boxes from its children’s meals,installed low-energy LED lights and pays for wind-generated electricity.

Since the emissions counts started appearing on the menu,sales of climate-friendly items have risen 20 percent. Still,plenty of people head to a burger restaurant lusting only for a burger.

Kristian Eriksson,26,an information technology specialist,looked embarrassed when asked about the burger he was eating at an outdoor table.

“You feel guilty picking red meat,” he said.

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