Meat | TableDebates

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Journal articles

Is Meat Industry Affiliation Associated With Study Conclusion in Nutrition Research?

This review found that in 500 studies, 78 (15.6%) reported industry involvement. Studies with industry ties were 16 times more likely to report favourable conclusions regarding meat consumption.

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Journal articles

Carbon tunnel vision and sustainable meat production in the West: A disproportionate focus on dietary greenhouse gas emissions?

This article argues that scientist, policymakers and NGOs have a carbon tunnel vision on addressing meat - a disproportionate focus on reducing emissions. The authors claim this tends to oversimplify the meat issue, ignoring regional variations, mitigation potential, and ecological and nutritional contexts. It concludes that hyperbolic narratives, and misguided policies risk compromising the reform of existing meat industries.

Goats on a farm in Nevada

What We Disagree About When We Disagree About Meat

This personal essay by Matthew Kessler was originally published in Tangle News, an independent, subscriber-supported media organization that covers the biggest politics stories in the U.S. by summarizing arguments from the right, left, and center (then "our take"). Matthew Kessler is the creator, host and producer of TABLE's food systems podcast, Feed, and has spent the past 15 years moving between farms, kitchens, universities, and recording studios. From 2022-2024, Matthew led a 2-year podcast project exploring four different futures for meat and livestock, adapted from Tara Garnett's Gut feelings essay.

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The meat agenda: Agricultural exceptionalism and greenwash in Brazil

In this report, NGO Changing Markets Foundation investigates the scale of corporate capture at COP30 by the meat industry, shines a spotlight on the agricultural methane blind spot and unpacks how key climate policies are being weakened.

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Meat Facts

This briefing by the Food Foundation aims to support food system stakeholders in how to map out and implement pathways to reduce meat consumption, in light of government and private sector inaction.

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News and resources

How "national champion" firms are reshaping the global meat industry

This article argues that Brazil’s JBS and China’s WH Group grew into global meat giants through state support, accelerating consolidation and environmental harm. Despite national backing, they now primarily serve transnational capital. Scholars argue for a global competition treaty to curb unchecked corporate power.

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Raw Deal

Financial journalist Chloe Sorvino investigates the industrial meat industry, laying bare corporate greed, fundamental weaknesses in the sector, the limitations of local movements challenging the status quo and the false promise of lab-grown meat.

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Journal articles

Recommendations to address the shortfalls of the EAT–Lancet planetary health diet

The EAT-Lancet’s planetary health diet, particularly its meat reduction approach, received criticism for the plant-forward diet recommendations and potential micronutrient shortfalls. This study responds to this debate and provides recommendations that address the shortfalls.

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Journal articles

Whole-chain intensification of pig and chicken farming could lower emissions with economic and food production benefits

This study used data from 166 countries to model the environmental, climate and economic impacts of pig and chicken whole-chain intensification – the process of enhancing productivity and efficiency across every stage of the production chain. It found this could reduce annual nitrogen and greenhouse gas emissions by 49% and 68%, respectively.