Research reignites debate over meat and climate

Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has challenged research linking lower meat consumption with climate and health benefits, arguing it overlooks Scottish livestock farming’s wider environmental contribution.

The criticism follows a modelling study by the University of Edinburgh, carried out with the University of Oxford and Food Standards Scotland, which suggests replacing some meat and dairy with foods such as vegetables, beans and eggs could reduce greenhouse gas emissions while improving health without increasing diet costs.

Researchers modelled 33 dietary scenarios based on recommendations from the UK Climate Change Committee.

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Across every scenario, lower meat and dairy consumption was associated with reduced greenhouse gas emissions, lower land and water use, and improved health outcomes.

The study also suggested that encouraging people with the highest meat consumption to cut back could prevent almost 60,000 cases of type 2 diabetes over the next decade, while delivering greater environmental benefits than just reducing consumption evenly across the population.

Dr Joe Kennedy, from the University of Edinburgh’s division of global agriculture and food systems, said: “The findings show that modest, realistic dietary changes, when scaled across a population, can deliver substantial benefits to people and the planet.”

Livestock benefits

However, QMS said the research failed to properly account for the role grazing livestock play in biodiversity, carbon sequestration and sustainable land management.

It pointed to findings from its Environmental Baselining pilot, which suggest existing carbon accounting methods may significantly underestimate the amount of carbon stored in Scottish soils.

The organisation also questioned recommendations to reduce meat consumption at a time of growing demand.

A QMS spokesperson said: “It is also illogical and inconsistent with sustainability goals to allow domestic production to decline and fill the gap with imports, especially when this penalises Scotland’s highly efficient, lower-emission producers and the rural communities that rely on them.”

Nutritional value

QMS added that average red meat consumption in Scotland is already below recommended limits for many people and cited previous Food Standards Scotland modelling suggesting blanket advice to eat less meat could disproportionately reduce nutrient intakes among women and girls.

NFU Scotland vice-president Robert Neill also defended the sector, saying buying locally produced Scottish meat and dairy supports rural businesses while helping avoid offshoring emissions through increased food imports.