Eat Lower Down the Carbon Chain
Cattle and sheep release a very powerful greenhouse gas called Methane as part of their digestive process. Reducing meals with beef or lamb just once per week for a family of four is the same as taking the average car off the road for up to 1,500 miles.
Your Impact
Action Steps & Tips
Introduction
Who knew? Cattle, sheep, and goats all create methane gas (CH4), a very powerful greenhouse gas, through their normal digestion process. This process is called rumination—in plain language, they “burp” methane. Methane is over 30 times more powerful (and harmful) than our most common climate emission, carbon dioxide. Methane is also created from the manure of cattle and other animals. In total, methane and other climate emissions from cattle and other animal livestock make up nearly 5% of greenhouse gases globally and 4% in the U.S. Cattle has the largest impact in this category.
Raising cattle also requires a large amount of water, grains, land, and energy to create just one pound of beef. The overall impact of eating beef is significant on our natural resources. Reducing your weekly consumption of beef and lamb—even just a little—can significantly lower your climate impact and help preserve other precious natural resources.
On the other side, fruits, vegetables, grains, and other plant-based foods have a much lower impact, almost 20 to 1. And eating lower down the carbon impact chain can also benefit your health. Research shows choosing a plant-based, whole grain diet with less or no animal protein is the best diet for your health!
1Learn about the carbon impact of different foods
Food varies widely in how much impact it has on climate emissions. Here are some guidelines:
Beef and lamb are the most carbon-intensive foods. Beef is nearly 7 lbs of CO2e for a 4 oz serving.
Cheese, pork and shellfish are next with about a third of the impact of beef and lamb.
Poultry, fish, eggs and milk are just under 20% the impact of beef and lamb.
Grains, beans, nuts, fruit, and vegetables all have a very low impact, less than 5% the impact of beef and lamb.
If you replace beef or lamb with low impact foods like beans, grains or nuts for a family of four once a week, you can save emissions equivalent of nearly 1,500 car miles. If you replace it with poultry, fish or eggs once a week, the impact is closer to 1,200 car miles.
2Consider reducing beef and lamb consumption
Reducing your family's beef or lamb consumption by one or more meals per week can have a big impact! Even small changes can make a big difference. Here are some additional things to consider:
Extra bonus - health benefit. Eating less red meat can also improve your long-term health. Eating a diet high in red meat can increase your risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers. Recent studies have shown that substituting one serving per day of red meat with other foods like fish, poultry, nuts, legumes (beans), low-fat dairy and whole grains could lower the risk of premature death from heart disease, cancer or other causes by 7-19%. Eating protein sources lower down the carbon emissions chain not only helps protect our future from climate change but also helps protect your future! Check with your doctor for more information on nutritional guidelines and what changes are best for your health.
Make it fun! Changing up your dinner time routine can be fun! Talk with your family and get ideas for what you would like to substitute for beef or lamb. Ask everyone for ideas and then plan to try each one! Search online or in cookbooks to find new recipes to try. Or if searching for recipes doesn’t sound fun, skip that step and consider looking for new alternatives at your favorite restaurant. There are many great plant-based proteins like beans, lentils, quinoa, and tofu or animal proteins like chicken, fish or turkey to try adding in. These alternatives to beef are often less expensive and can save your family money on food as well.
Do what is best for you. The choices we make with our diet are highly personal with many cultural and local community considerations. Choose what is best for you and your family.