People who enjoy nothing more than tucking into a juicy steak or succulent lamb chop are in for a big surprise, with scientists warning diets high in meat can have devastating effects on personal health and the environment.
While there’s no denying meat can be an important part of a balanced diet and fuel the body with important nutrients such as iron, protein and zinc, researchers from the University of Oxford have found that high consumption of red meats can actually increase the risk of certain diseases such as colorectal cancer.
Published in the Science Journal, researchers have also warned it could cause significant environmental impacts including greenhouse gas emissions and are warning people to change their diets and cut back on meat.
The study noted that excessive consumption of red and processed meats can increase the risk of death as well as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Despite this, meat consumption is continuing to rise in many parts of the world.
According to Meat and Livestock Australia, red meat is Australia’s favourite meat, with people consuming beef on average three times a week, and lamb or pork once a week. Processed meats such as bacon, ham, deli meats and sausages are also consumed around four times a week. While it can provide nutrients, researchers argue they can be found in a variety of other foods without eating meat.
Environmentally, meat produces more emissions per unit of energy compared with plant-based foods. Meanwhile, poultry production also leads to less emissions than mammals.
Read more: Could removing red meat from your diet lower your risk of colorectal cancer?
Researchers have acknowledged that it will be tougher for governments to crack down on people reducing their meat intake, but noted labelling schemes, certification programs and even fat taxes could be used to turn people off red meats. Others have said more emphasis needs to be placed on discretionary foods and their impact on health.
“Overlooked is the importance of reducing the intake of discretionary foods to improve diet quality and reduce environmental impacts,” argued Bradley Ridoutt, Principal Research Scientist for CSIRO Agriculture and Food. “Discretionary foods, which are energy rich and nutrient poor, come in many different forms.”
These can include sugar-sweetened beverages, beers, wines, dairy desserts, processed meats, biscuits, cakes and pastries, fried hot potato chips, salted snacks, jam, honey and confectionery.
Read more: Put down that steak: WHO says red meat causes cancer
Ridoutt also downplayed stats that claim meat is worse for the environment than plants.
“In addition, the environmental impacts of animal-based foods are not necessarily higher than plant-based foods,” he said. “A comprehensive study of water footprints in Australia has shown that the agricultural products with highest water footprint were rice, nuts, cotton, summer legumes, stone fruit, summer oilseeds, grapes and citrus.”
Other scientists, including Ralph Sims, Professor of Sustainable Energy at the Massey University, think the findings provide good contribution to the current debate surrounding meat.
For example, he noted Air New Zealand serves “meatless” hamburgers on flights, while Israel now supplies China with US$300 million (AU$407 million, £230 million) of synthetic protein products annually.
“The global food supply system that has successfully fed the world’s growing demand for food protein is unsustainable in the long term,” he said. “It consumes around 70 per cent of freshwater withdrawals, uses around one-third of all end-use energy, has caused much loss of biodiversity as a result of land-use change and agri-chemicals, and produces almost one-quarter of greenhouse gases (GHG). Moves towards a more circular economy for food supply will grow rapidly.”