Livestock | TableDebates

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Focus: the difficult livestock issue

A central topic of most debates on sustainable food systems is the complex role of livestock, meat and dairy. This is due to their connection to many issues of moral and practical concern related to food systems; affecting both humans and the environment, and animal's own interests. The picture is complex. And because different stakeholders bring different worldviews and perspectives, people often disagree about the appropriate role of livestock, meat, and dairy, in sustainable food systems. Yet demand for meat and dairy consumption is expected to grow considerably, and as a result, debates around livestock-related issues are becoming increasingly prominent. Understanding these helps to provide a broader understanding of food systems more generally.

Photo: KeWynn Lee, Before, Flickr, Creative Commons License 2.0

Re-framing the climate change debate in the livestock sector: mitigation and adaptation options

This review article provides a summary of the multiple environmental and societal costs and benefits of livestock production. Homing in on climate change, it reviews the range of GHG mitigation options that have been proposed both on the supply side (actions that potentially reduce emissions per unit of production, or absolute emissions, considering both changes in practice and in policy) and those on the demand side (e.g. reductions in meat consumption, waste reduction).

Photo: jai Mansson, Flickr, Creative Commons License 2.0

Debate on beef production intensification and land sparing vs. land sharing in the Amazon

This letter in Global Change Biology responds to a paper published earlier in the year in Nature Climate Change by de Silva et al (summarised by the FCRN here) which concludes that a combination of strict land controls and an increase in beef production in the Amazon could lead to greater emissions reduction than a scenario of land control and no beef production increases.

Photo: Peter O’Connor, Cattle Herd, Flickr, Creative Commons License 2.0

CFS HLPE Report: Sustainable Agricultural Development for Food Security and Nutrition: what roles for Livestock?

This report commissioned by the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) and written by its High Level Panel of Experts for Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE) focuses on sustainable agricultural development for food security and nutrition, specifically in relation to livestock.

Photo: Jessica Spengler, Puy lentils, Flickr creative commons licence 2.0

Protein futures for Western Europe: potential land use and climate impacts in 2050

This paper looks at the agricultural land requirements and GHG emissions associated with supplying Western Europe with food in 2050 from its own land base. It modelled a range of food consumption scenarios based on different ‘protein futures’ to evaluate land use and GHG emissions taking into account both production and demand side mitigation options.

A man at a table gesticulating with his hands. Photo by Headway via Unsplash.

Resumen de las discusiones del foro regional del FCRN sobre sistemas alimentarios sustentables en Latinoamérica.

Por Marie Persson. Gracias a Carlos Gonzalez Fischer por sus sugerencias sobre los temas a tratar (y esta traducción) y a Sarah Najera por su colaboración con el planeamiento y la ejecución del foro. Pueden leer (y difundir) el resumen en inglés también.

A man at a table gesticulating with his hands. Photo by Headway via Unsplash.

FCRN regional forums: A summary of discussions in forum on sustainable food systems in Latin America

In this piece, FCRN's communications and network development officer Marie Persson introduces a new regional forum. Thanks to Carlos Gonzales Fischer for input on forum topics and Sarah Najera for assistance with planning and execution of the forum .

Feeding Climate Change: what the Paris Agreement Means for Food & Beverage Companies

The Oxfam briefing Feeding Climate Change: what the Paris Agreement Means for Food & Beverage Companies looks at commodities and climate change and policy from the perspective of the food and beverage industry.

Photo credit: (Flickr: crustmania, creative commons 2.0)

Feeding the world without deforestation - the biophysical option

Taking as their starting point a hypothetical zero-deforestation for agricultural production, where people would refrain from clearing any further forests for agricultural purposes, the researchers behind this study look at both supply side and demand side measures to assess how changes in production and diet can assist in halting deforestation