Cows and cars should not be conflated in climate change debates
Ian Scoones
Current Address : Institute of Development Studies Reprinted from : https :// bit . ly / 3pIpFis
NEWS
With world leaders gathered for the COP26 summit in Glasgow , there is much talk of methane emissions and belching cows . The Global Methane Pledge , led by the US and EU and now with many country signatories , aims to reduce methane emissions by 30 % by 2030 . This is seen as a “ quick win ” to reduce global warming and will have major implications for livestock production .
Livestock has become the villain of climate change . Some researchers claim that
14.5 % of all human-derived emissions come from livestock , either directly or indirectly . There have been widespread calls for radical shifts in livestock production and diet globally to address climate chaos . But which livestock , where ? As a new report , I co-authored argues , it is vitally important to differentiate between production systems .
Not all milk and meat is the same . Extensive , often mobile , pastoral systems – of the sort commonly seen across the African continent , as well as in Asia , Latin America and Europe – have hugely different effects to contained , intensive industrial livestock production .
Yet , in standard narratives about diet and production shifts , all livestock are lumped in together . Cows are misleadingly equated with
polluting cars and
beef with coal .
The simplistic “ all livestock are bad ” narrative is promoted by campaign organisations , environmental celebrities , rich philanthropists and policymakers alike . Inevitably , it dominates
media coverage . However , a much more sophisticated debate is needed .
Delving into data
Our report delves into the data and highlights the problems with using aggregate statistics in assessing the impacts of livestock on the global climate .
Some types of livestock production , especially those using industrial systems , are certainly highly damaging to the environment . They generate significant greenhouse gas emissions and cause serious water pollution . They also add to deforestation through demand for feed and expanding grazing areas , for example . And , reducing the amount of
animal-source foods in diets , whether in the global north or south , makes much sense , both for the environment and for people ’ s health .
One is that global assessments are overwhelmingly based on data from industrial systems . A
frequently quoted paper looking at 38,700 farms and 1,600 processors only focused on “ commercially viable ” units , mostly from Europe and North America . However , not all livestock are the same , meaning that global extrapolations don ’ t work .
Research in Kenya , for example , shows how
assumptions about emissions from African animals are inaccurate . Such livestock are smaller , have higher quality diets due to selective grazing and have physiologies adapted to their settings . They are not the same as a highly bred animal in a respiration chamber , which
Figure 1 . Cattle driven into the Kenyan capital Nairobi for new pasture amid a severe drought navigate through city traffic . ( Photo by Simon Maina / AFP via Getty Images )
Grassroots Vol 21 No 4 December 2021 18