When people consider the main drivers of climate change, thoughts often turn to burning fossil fuels used in industry, energy, and transport. Yet another significant contributor lies close to home on many dinner plates: industrial farming. Jacqueline Mills, World Animal Protection’s Livestock Campaign Manager, revived a long-standing, controversial question about how meat consumption itself shapes climate change. These concerns reflect growing evidence that diet patterns are linked to environmental health and planetary futures.
Data support the connection. If global consumption of chicken and pork were reduced by half by 2040, global greenhouse gas emissions could drop substantially, with a potential reduction equivalent to removing tens of millions of vehicles from roads. This would amount to a meaningful step toward lower emissions on a planetary scale.
While beef production has long been recognized for its high environmental footprint, the impact of poultry and pig farming receives less attention. World Animal Protection undertook a focused examination of how this sector contributes to climate change, aiming to quantify its share within the broader picture of global meat production. The findings underscore the diet-climate link and emphasize that changes in consumption could positively influence the planet’s trajectory.
In a report published on its website, the organization notes that diet and agricultural practices are tightly connected to climate health, with intensive meat production playing a central role. The report argues that shifts in consumption, along with improvements in farming methods, can yield tangible climate benefits over time.
Pork and chicken underestimated compared to cow
Historically, the climate impact of pork and chicken has been underestimated. Methane from ruminant digestion and manure, especially from cattle, has drawn most research attention. However, pig and poultry manure also contribute to environmental pressure, and not insignificantly. In the assessment, their emissions represent roughly 20 to 25 percent of total sector emissions, with the greatest impact arising from how these animals are fed and housed throughout production.
Researchers analyzed four critical production and consumption points across the globe: Brazil, China, the Netherlands, and the United States, representing a cross-section of continents. The analysis revealed that emissions from the chicken meat industry in these four countries were substantial enough to be likened to keeping a large number of cars on the road for a year.
Providing for a family of four with chicken over a week, for instance, could be imagined as equivalent to felling several trees to grow crops for feed. In a scenario focused on pork, the tree-loss figure remains high as well. The translation is clear: feeding 10 kg of chicken and 10 kg of pork through current production means entails noticeable environmental costs in terms of land use.
Brazil stands out as a major producer and exporter of poultry feed. When production is oriented toward domestic needs, the environmental impact intensifies. In countries that import feed, the climate effect tends to double, highlighting how interconnected agricultural systems influence global emissions.
Crop production for animal feed also stresses water resources and relies on fertilizers and pesticides that can pollute rivers relied upon by both people and animals alike.
In China, the demand for corn and wheat to feed pigs drives water use that accounts for a large share of the country’s agricultural water consumption. The report quotes Mills, noting that intensive animal production disrupts vital habitats, displaces wildlife, and remains a central source of animal suffering while also contributing to climate harm.
Increasing trend
There is a viable path forward. Halving chicken and pork consumption by 2040 could cut the annual climate impact of these sectors in half, effectively removing a sizable number of cars from the road for a year. Yet the current trend runs opposite to this goal, with projections showing growth in poultry and pork demand across regions including Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and North America in the near term.
Mills stresses that governments must act to meet deforestation and emission commitments by ending intensive production practices. The study calls for a collaborative approach among governments, industry, and citizens. It urges policymakers to end subsidies for such farming, encourages industry to transition toward more sustainable systems, reduce monoculture dependencies, and improve animal welfare. Citizens can play a role by choosing to eat less meat, prioritizing quality and sustainability where possible.
Basic work: World Animal Protection report on Climate Change and Cruelty. [Source attribution: World Animal Protection, Climate Change and Cruelty Final Report]
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Environment department notes and data sources are documented within the organization’s climate research materials. [Source attribution: World Animal Protection climate report]