Food production is a major driver of biodiversity loss, yet there is little research detailing how different countries influence the conservation of specific crops, animals, and plant species. Japanese researchers have quantified how production and consumption patterns interact across 197 countries with 48 essential agricultural and livestock products. Their work shows these patterns collide with the conservation priorities of 7,143 species, and they have built an interactive map to help policy makers balance biodiversity protection with global food security.
The study aims to illuminate the large-scale exchanges between people and nature that shape what we eat, how we produce it, and how trade links all of it together.
“Demand for food products has put agricultural land use in direct competition with biodiversity. Where these pressures occur and who bears responsibility is not fully understood. By merging conservation priority maps with agricultural trade data, potential protection risk points become clearer”, the researchers explain.
Among their conclusions, they note that roughly one third of the world’s agricultural production occurs in areas with high conservation priority, meaning these regions are critical for biodiversity.
Beef, rice, soy, and palm oil emerge as the biggest threats, with substituted crops like barley, wheat, sugar beet, and pearl millet concentrated in high-priority zones. Sunflower, by contrast, is largely sourced from lower-risk areas according to the report.
Other staple crops such as corn, sugarcane, and rubber also demand more attention from policymakers as they interact with high-priority conservation zones.
Finding the balance
“The study reveals that consuming certain essential products such as coffee, cocoa, or palm oil by specific groups of countries drives land use in areas with very high conservation priority.” The goal is to seek a balance that maps which crops fit best in particular landscapes while protecting biodiversity.
China, the United States, India, Japan, and the European Union account for the largest biodiversity damage footprints in high-priority areas. The findings come from a study recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The international team, with researchers from Norway, the Netherlands, and Japan, divided farmland into four levels from lowest to highest conservation priority. They then tracked where each agricultural product is produced within those levels.
A notable and surprising result is that the impact of the same crop can vary greatly by origin. For example, beef and soybeans are produced in high-conservation areas in Brazil but not in North America. Similarly, wheat faces higher priority in Eastern Europe than in Western Europe, the researchers note.
Coffee and cocoa are mostly grown near the equator in high-priority zones, yet they are heavily consumed in wealthier countries such as the United States and the European Union. The researchers conclude that globally, China has the largest impact on food production within high-priority conservation areas due to its demand for multiple crops.
Effects of climate change
The study shows nations can have very different biodiversity footprints in food. The United States, the EU, China, and Japan rely heavily on imports to meet meat and dairy demands.
More than a quarter of beef and dairy products originate from high-priority zones, especially in Japan. The United States, the EU, and China are close to ten percent.
“This indicates that changing our sourcing for food products can alter the biodiversity footprint”, notes Keiichiro Kanemoto, one of the paper’s lead authors.
Looking ahead, scientists expect climate change to reshape both crop models and existing habitats. The team explored different scenarios to see how wildlife biodiversity and agriculture might interact under projected temperatures for 2070, when temperatures are expected to be much higher than today.
“Species likely to colonize new territories in a warmer world could create new high-priority conservation areas or ease conflicts in current hotspots”, the researchers say.
Our lifestyles are causing growing damage to the atmosphere and water resources. Farmers and governments around the world must pursue policies that protect well-being and minimize irreversible environmental harm.
Sustainable development policies are essential for agriculture. Calculating detailed footprints for food and other agricultural products helps support these policies, Moran explains.
Interactive map: [citation]
Reference report: [citation]
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To contact the environment department: [citation]