Healthier planet needs healthy diets, sustainable food production

What we eat, and how that food is produced, has an impact on our health as well as the environment.Food production has a significant impact on climate change due to various factors throughout the supply chain. It contributes to greenhouse gas emissions in several ways.Food needs to be grown and processed, transported, distributed, prepared, consumed, and sometimes disposed of. Each of these steps creates greenhouse gases that trap the sun’s heat and contribute to climate change and about a third of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions is linked to food, according to the United Nations.The largest chunk of food-related greenhouse gases comes from agriculture and land use. This includes, for instance methane from cattle’s digestive process, nitrous oxide from fertilisers used for crop production,Carbon dioxide from cutting down forests for the expansion of farmland, other agricultural emissions from manure management, rice cultivation, burning of crop residues, and the use of fuel on farms.A much smaller share of the greenhouse gas emissions of food are caused by refrigeration and transport of food, industrial processes such as the production of paper and aluminium for packaging and the management of food waste.The climate impact of food is measured in terms of greenhouse gas emissions intensity. Deforestation for agriculture releases carbon dioxide stored in trees, reducing the planet’s capacity to absorb CO2.Reducing emissions from the food sector requires changes at all stages, from producers to consumers, UN says.Where appropriate, shifting food systems towards plant-rich diets – with more plant protein (such as beans, chickpeas, lentils, nuts, and grains), a reduced amount of animal-based foods (meat and dairy) and less saturated fats (butter, milk, cheese, meat, coconut oil and palm oil) – can lead to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to current dietary patterns in most industrialised countries.Alternative proteins – such as plant-based meat and dairy substitutes, insect-based proteins, and cell-based/cultivated meat – provide promising prospects and are attracting growing demand, financial investment and technological innovation.But animal products remain an important source of food security, nutrition, livelihoods for large numbers of rural populations around the world. Improved feeds and feeding techniques can reduce methane generated during cattle’s digestion as well as the amount of gases released by decomposing manure.Smaller herd sizes, with fewer, more productive animals can also help. And better agricultural practices, such as improved manure and fertiliser management, rotational grazing to maintain healthy soil to store carbon, and the restoration of degraded lands can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.At the same time, reducing food waste is key, a UN report noted. Almost 1bn tonnes of food – 17% of all food available to consumers worldwide – goes into trash bins every year.Producing, transporting, and letting that food rot contribute more than 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions.To mitigate the impact of food production on climate change, various strategies can be employed. These include sustainable agricultural practices like precision farming, organic farming, agroforestry, and efficient irrigation techniques.Reducing food loss and waste, promoting plant-based diets, and transitioning to renewable energy sources in the food system also play crucial roles in mitigating climate change associated with food production.