Low-carbon diets can reduce global ecological and health costs

This study investigates the potential cost savings associated with reducing animal-sourced foods. By combining life cycle assessment principles and monetarization factors, the researchers estimate the monetary value of damage to human health and ecosystems caused by food production. Globally, approximately US$2 of production-related external costs were embedded in every dollar of food expenditure in 2018—a total of US$14.0 trillion in externalities. A shift to plant-based diets could reduce these costs by up to US$7.3 trillion, while also curbing carbon emissions. The analysis reveals the substantial potential of dietary change, particularly in high and upper-middle-income countries, to deliver socio-economic benefits while mitigating climate change.

Elysia Lucas, Miao Guo, Gonzalo Guillén-Gosálbez