A new report from the World Bank called for resources to be allocated away from producing red meat and dairy to focus production on low-carbon foods, which could lead to an increase in prices for some foods.
In a new paper, the World Bank noted wealthy nations should switch from high production of red meat and dairy, which produce high levels of carbon dioxide and are dangerous for accelerating climate change, to producing more foods such as chicken, fruits, and vegetables. It argued the switch to chicken and plant-based production is one of the more cost-effective ways to curb climate change.
“We have to stop destroying the planet as we feed ourselves,” Julian Lampietti, the World Bank’s manager for global engagement in the bank’s agriculture and food global practice, told Politico.
The report was set to be diplomatically convenient, coming years after many countries signed the 2015 Paris Agreement, a global pact that aims to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit. The countries that signed on are preparing to make updates to their climate plans by next year.
The report noted that countries must allocate $260 billion each year, 18 times more than most countries currently invest, to agriculture and food industries to truly lower emissions by 2050, the common deadline for many developed countries in terms of curbing climate change.
The report suggested that countries reorient subsidies to red meat and dairy production facilities toward alternatives that produce less carbon. It could have an impact on the cost of goods that produce more carbon.
“The full cost pricing of animal-sourced food to reflect its true planetary costs would make low-emission food options more competitive,” the report said.
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Lampietti warned against a culture war over food options, noting diet is a personal choice.
He said people should not think about changing their diet around “what you shouldn’t do” but more so “on what you should do.”
