> Replacing half of the pork, chicken, beef and milk products we consume with plant-based alternatives could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions from agricul

> Replacing half of the pork, chicken, beef and milk products we consume with plant-based alternatives could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and related land use by nearly a third, and virtually halt forest loss, according to research published on Tuesday. Switching completely to plant-based diets could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 16.5% [0], free up land equivalent to both Americas for reforestation [1], sequester in those forests enough carbon to offset all carbon produced since the industrial revolution [13], to restore biodiversity [2], and repair the water cycle [3], preventing droughts. The current trend of an American-style diet would require five Earths to sustain the global population [4]. As developing nations become more affluent, transitioning to plant-based diets is crucial for sustainable food production.[5] Current (animal) agriculture is a leading driver of biodiversity loss [6], deforestation [7], water pollution [8], oceanic dead zones [9], and soil erosion [10]. It is the primary factor pushing us into ecological overshoot [11] and threatens our survival.[12] [0] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352100490_Emissions_from_Animal_Agriculture-165_Is_the_New_Minimum_Figure https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352100490_Emissions... [1] https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2013/10/World-Map-by-Land-Use-01.png https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2013/10/World-Map-by-Land... [2] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26231772/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26231772/ [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biotic_pump https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biotic_pump [4] https://css.umich.edu/publications/factsheets/sustainability-indicators/us-environmental-footprint-factsheet https://css.umich.edu/publications/factsheets/sustainability... [5] https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/917471 https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/917471 [6] https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/our-global-food-system-primary-driver-biodiversity-loss https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/our-glob... [7] https://ourworldindata.org/drivers-of-deforestation https://ourworldindata.org/drivers-of-deforestation [8] https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impacts-of-food https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impacts-of-food [9] https://blogs.ubc.ca/makingwaves/2017/02/07/cows-pigs-and-poultry-the-leading-cause-of-ocean-dead-zones/ https://blogs.ubc.ca/makingwaves/2017/02/07/cows-pigs-and-po... [10] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/only-60-years-of-farming-left-if-soil-degradation-continues/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/only-60-years-of-... [11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_overshoot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_overshoot [12] https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/research-news/2023-09-13-all-planetary-boundaries-mapped-out-for-the-first-time-six-of-nine-crossed.html https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/research-news/2... [13] https://journals.plos.org/climate/article?id=10.1371/journal.pclm.0000010 https://journals.plos.org/climate/article?id=10.1371/journal...