deforestation

a forest with green trees looked from above

© Solar Foods
Studies & Numbers

Study: Replacing Half of Animal Foods With Alternatives Could Almost Halt Deforestation

A new study published in Nature Communications has found that replacing half of the animal foods consumed worldwide with plant-based meat and dairy alternatives could have significant environmental benefits. The research suggests that net forest loss could be “almost fully halted” if this change is made, with greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and land use declining by 31% in 2050 compared to 2020. In this scenario, around 653 Mha of agricultural land could be spared and restored to forest, doubling climate benefits. Furthermore, water use could be reduced by 10%. Replacing 50% of animal foods with plants could also reduce the rate of biodiversity loss from 2.1% to 0.9% by 2050. If 90% of animal foods were replaced, biodiversity loss would actually reverse between 2030 …

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tall grass with flowers

CollinsPhotography-stock.adobe.com
Sustainability / Environment

GFI Europe: Alt Proteins Could Halt Biodiversity Loss in the UK & Globally

The international nonprofit the Good Food Institute Europe says alternative proteins could help achieve the objectives of the UK’s Environmental Improvement Plan 2023. Recently published by the UK government, the document provides a comprehensive delivery plan for the government’s approach to “halting and then reversing the decline in nature.” A decline in nature? According to scientists, humanity is facing a rapid biodiversity loss that has become a crisis, with a global rate of species extinction tens to hundreds of times higher than the average over the past 10 million years. At the UN Nature Summit COP15 in December 2022, nations, including the UK, adopted an ambitious new global agreement to protect biodiversity (similar to the Paris agreement), to conserve and manage at least 30 percent of the …

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Cow in the Deck chair PlantBased Treaty

© The Plant Based Treaty
Charity & Campaigns

Edinburgh Becomes First European Capital to Join the Plant Based Treaty in Response to the Climate Emergency

Edinburgh becomes the first Scottish city and the first European capital to join the Plant Based Treaty initiative in response to the climate emergency. Haywards Heath in the UK, Boynton Beach in Florida, Los Angeles, Rosario in Argentina, one city in Turkey, and fourteen cities in India have joined The Plant Based Treaty. Since its launch in August 2021, the initiative has received support from 70,000 individual endorsers, 5 Nobel laureates, IPCC scientists, more than 1000 NGOs, and 1000 businesses. Green Councillor Steve Burgess presented the Plant Based Treaty to The City Council of Edinburgh, which voted unanimously to produce an impact assessment on the implications of endorsing The Treaty. The finalized report shows that “meat and dairy consumption must reduce to achieve climate targets” because food-related emissions and …

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Cacao-free chocolate bars

© WNWN Food Labs
Sweets & Snacks

WNWN Launches Vegan Version of Daim Bar, the ‘All-Free’ Waim! Bar

WNWN Food Labs, a London-based maker of cocoa-free chocolate, will launch a limited release of its new chocolate Waim! bar, an ‘all-free’ version of the iconic European candy Daim bar.  WNWN’s Waim! bar is dairy-free, gluten-free, palm oil-free, caffeine free, and vegan. “Our new bar is our take on an iconic European candy bar, but without the catastrophic impact on people and the planet,” the company states.  Early this year, WNWN launched a bean-free vegan chocolate claiming it was the first of its kind to arrive on the market. CEO and co-founder Ahrum Pak, commented: “Our chocolate habit is contributing to deforestation, biodiversity loss, soil erosion, CO2 emissions, child slavery, and unfair trade practices.”  How is cacao-free chocolate possible? For centuries, powdered carob pods have been …

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the fruit of the palm oil used for palm oil production

© Clean Food Group
Politics & Law

EU Parliament Backs Proposed Law to Ban Products Linked to Deforestation

Members of the European Parliament have backed a proposal for a law that would ban the sale of agricultural products linked to deforestation. Once the law is approved, businesses will be required to ensure that their agricultural goods do not contribute to deforestation anywhere in the world. The legislation will cover soy, cattle, palm oil, wood, cocoa, and coffee. It may also be extended to include meat from pigs, sheep, goats, and poultry, along with maize, rubber, charcoal, and printed paper products. As an extension of the law, MEPs propose that goods should be produced in accordance with human rights provisions and in a way that respects the rights of indigenous people. They also suggest that banks and financial institutions should be covered by the …

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Natures Fynd patties

© Nature's Fynd
Studies & Numbers

Deforestation Could be Halved by Replacing 20% of Beef With Microbial Protein

Research conducted by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) has found that deforestation could be halved if a fifth of beef is replaced with microbial protein by 2050. This type of protein is produced via fermentation, using microbes grown in cultures. The process is similar to producing bread or beer, and was first used to make protein products as long ago as the 1980s. For the new study, researchers used a computer simulation to predict what would happen if microbial protein was substituted for 20% of the beef currently consumed. The results showed that deforestation and carbon emissions from land-use change would both be cut in half, while methane and nitrous oxide emissions would also be reduced. Fermented proteins Several companies are exploring …

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unep-report

unep-report
Society

UN Climate Report: Change to Vegan Diet Could Free Millions of Kilometres of Forest & Reduce CO2 Emissions by Eight Billion Tonnes a Year

Today an official summary of the latest UN report has been released, as a means to inform the upcoming climate negotiations and advise about the global climate crisis. It says that by 2050, dietary changes could free millions of square kilometres of land, and reduce global CO2 emissions by up to eight billion tonnes per year.

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Iceland supermarket

©Iceland
Society

That Iceland Advert: All You Need to Know

Earlier this year, Greenpeace released an animated film about devastation of orangutan habitat as a result of palm oil production. Palm oil production is a major contributing factor to deforestation in Southeast Asia, but is found in nearly half of all supermarket products, from food to cosmetics.

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