We have to eat, that's clear. But what we choose to eat every day has a huge impact on our planet. We want to break down how you can eat in a climate-friendly way, whether the cow really is a climate killer and whether organic food is the better choice.
What was the beginning of man's downfall? According to Yuval Noah Harari, Hebrew professor of history, it was the development of agriculture. For it was through agriculture that property was first created and subsequently a system of rulers and elites (source: A Brief History of Mankind is a non-fiction book by Yuval Noah Harari).
If agriculture is the cause of all evil, could a new type of agriculture not, conversely, be the new start to a sustainable future?
Main cause and sufferer
Land use, agriculture and forestry are responsible for around 23 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions (methane emissions, CO₂ emissions, nitrous oxide emissions). If we include all food production (upstream and downstream food production processes and land use changes such as deforestation are also included), we are already up to 37%!(IPCC special report in August 2019) - it therefore accounts for the largest chunk of greenhouse gas emissions.
At the same time, agriculture is suffering the most from global warming. Even in Austria, according to AGES 2018, a further 3 degrees of warming would greatly delay rainfall and mean more droughts. In the Marchfeld region, crop losses of up to 50 percent would be expected and food supplies would be at risk.
Austria is already dependent on food and animal feed imports. The country imports around 550,000 tons of soy per year (AGES 2015), which corresponds to an external area requirement of around 166,700 hectares. Approximately one third of the soy comes from Brazil, one third from Argentina and one third from the USA. 75 percent of the imported feed soy from overseas is genetically modified.
Am I no longer allowed to eat schnitzel?
During the 2019 Austrian election campaign, the SPÖ leadership tweeted: "Schnitzel must not become a luxury!" With this, they railed against a possible meat tax and tried to appease voters who were afraid of losing their schnitzel for climate protection reasons.
But I ask you, were you among the people this summer who railed against Bolsonaro for allowing the forest fires in Brazil? Then remember the soy imports for Austrian animal fattening. And remember, your regular schnitzel takes up an area in Brazil larger than Vienna, where jaguars, hummingbirds etc. used to roam.
You don't have to go vegan, but ask where the feed comes from. The "Prüf Nach!" standard has the strictest guidelines in Austria, it stipulates 100 percent local feed(authentic regionality). These regulations are met, for example, by Back to the origin organic products at HOFER or the meat products in the organic canteens comply with these regulations.
If only domestic feed was used, that would also be the end of factory farming! Austria does not have enough land to produce sausage, meat, milk and eggs every day. How would that benefit the animals? How delicious would the long-awaited schnitzel from organic pigs taste?
So what does a climate-friendly diet look like?
In January 2019, the Lancet Commission drew attention to itself with the publication of the planetary health diet, a diet that is both environmentally friendly and healthy. The proposed diet consists mainly of vegetables, dairy products, whole grains, fruit, legumes, healthy oils and fats. Only 43 g of meat (poultry and red meat) per day is planned, i.e. 301 g per week.
Critics accuse the publishers of being biased, as many of them are vegans or even animal rights activists. I can't understand this argument, because isn't it logical that I should practice the lifestyle that I consider to be good for the world myself? Is a study by non-smokers on the harmfulness of tobacco less credible than one by smokers?
And what about the cow now? Climate killer no. 1?
Cows constantly belch methane, which is up to 33 times more harmful to the climate thanCO2. 9.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are actually caused by cattle. Nevertheless, it is scientifically questionable to reduce a cow to its methane emissions alone.
Ruminants play an important role in the history of the world: grasslands are huge carbon reservoirs, and they were created by the coexistence of grasses and ruminants. By grazing, grasses form a lot of root mass, which stores carbon in the soil, while at the same time the excrements of ruminants supply the soil with nutrients. A wonderful interplay of nature, the preservation of which is of great importance for biodiversity, soils and climate.
However, if a cow stands in a barn and is fed with concentrated feed (corn, soy, grain), it is unfortunately completely lost. The unused grassland is usually built on, turned into steppes or plowed into arable land. This in turn leads to the depletion of humus and possibly the leaching of nitrates, which is associated with nitrous oxide andCO2 emissions. This is why grazing is mandatory for all ruminants (cattle, goats, sheep) at Prüf Nach! because extensive grassland must be preserved at all costs.
Is organic farming harmful to the climate?
Studies are repeatedly published that maximizing output and yield is the best way to achieve climate-friendly agriculture. If more is produced on a smaller area, for example, the land that is freed up can be reforested. Organic farming, which delivers lower yields per hectare, is therefore harmful to the climate.
Unfortunately, maximization usually means intensification, which is only possible with chemical-synthetic pesticides and artificial fertilizers or the over-breeding and exploitation of animals. Fortunately, however, there are already sustainable approaches and counter-designs, such as the circular economy, permaculture and mixed cultivation.(Climate-friendly agriculture, this is how it's done)
(Scientific background on the climate impact of organic farming can be found at: Climate killer organic?)
A viable path
And now we have come full circle: If agriculture was the root of all evil, can sustainable, communal agriculture be the origin of a new way of living together? For thousands of years, humans have been careful with resources, as they were the life insurance for their descendants. The Iroquois even asked themselves whether their actions would be beneficial for their descendants in seven generations' time.
If we see food as a valuable commodity again, not as a disposable product or purely for survival, this appreciation will also be transferred to other areas. The phrase "you are what you eat" sums this up perfectly.
Taking the step towards a climate-friendly diet is certainly one of the most effective ways to fundamentally change your lifestyle. And it is one of the most rewarding, because it is associated with wonderful enjoyment! What an experience, what an explosion for the taste buds when they are allowed to experience sustainable food.
How wonderful a freshly cooked dish tastes compared to fast food. How intense is the sun-ripened tomato rarity in summer compared to the greenhouse tomato in winter?
With this in mind, enjoy your climate-friendly diet!
About the author
Dr. Isabell Riedl has been working as a sustainability officer and in communications at Werner Lampert GmbH since 2012. She studied ecology with a focus on nature and landscape conservation and tropical ecology at the University of Vienna. She wrote her dissertation on the importance of tree rows in agricultural areas for forest birds in Costa Rica. Throughout her life, she has been particularly committed to ecological sustainability. She is part of the editorial team of the online magazine "Nachhaltigkeit. Rethink."
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