Meat consumption is considered the main cause of food-related greenhouse gas emissions, so adopting more sustainable habits requires changing the contents of our plates. For sheep breeders, this means thinking about new production methods... So what is the relationship between eating meat, climate change, and sustainability?

While France is hosting the international agricultural fair, farmers and livestock breeders are competing to showcase the latest innovations in the field. Among these innovations are environmentally friendly cattle breeds such as the "Nij," "Ideli," and "Imans" cows. This year, farmers presented the 5-year-old "Ovali" cow, which was the star of the international agricultural fair in Paris.

Environmentally friendly cows are genetically modified cows using sperm containing a reduced methane gas percentage, which causes global warming.

While environmental advocates regularly point to the climate impact of meat production, the agricultural fair in France also represents an opportunity to rethink production methods and the place of meat cuts on plates, according to the "France 24" website in its French version.

Worldwide, meat consumption is steadily increasing. According to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), production has increased fivefold over the past sixty years, from 71 million tons in 1961 to 339 million tons in 2021.

This massive production actually has strong consequences on climate change, especially livestock, as the sector is responsible for 14.5% of total human-induced greenhouse gas emissions and half of the emissions from the global agricultural sector, the main cause of greenhouse gases.

On her part, Karen Barbier, an agricultural economist and researcher at the National Center for Scientific Research and founder of CERID (Environmental Research), said: "In France, we eat on average between 100 and 110 grams daily per person. This roughly equals 85 kilograms annually. This is twice the global average."

She added: "Overall, only a quarter of French people declare that they are flexible – where they only sometimes eat meat – and 2.2% are vegetarians."

Barbier added: "This is the main reason for greenhouse gas emissions related to our food," explaining that "in detail, food as a whole already represents 25% of French emissions, which includes the entire process from production to plates and imports. Livestock breeding alone represents 9% of our total emissions."

According to the French researcher, if livestock breeding is very costly for the planet, it is because it contributes to releasing three greenhouse gases into the atmosphere: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane. "Carbon dioxide emissions come from the use of fossil fuels in transportation, especially imports, the use of agricultural machinery, as well as from agricultural food industries and wholesale distribution."

Barbier added: "As for nitrous oxide (N2O), it comes from mineral nitrogen fertilizers spread in the fields. Methane is produced by the digestion of ruminant animals."

She continued: "However, the latter two, which are often less known, are particularly harmful: nitrous oxide has a warming potential 300 times greater than carbon dioxide, and methane is 28 times greater."

Karen Barbier stressed: "Therefore, we must distinguish between ruminants and pigs and poultry," explaining that "due to their special digestive system, ruminant animals have a greater impact on the climate."

According to data from the Environment and Energy Management Agency, one kilogram of beef emits nearly 14 kilograms of CO2 equivalent (or CO2e) – which includes carbon dioxide, methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide, i.e., ten times more than poultry.

Not to mention that these impacts on the climate are exacerbated by harmful effects on the environment. In 2015, a report issued by the Institute of Physics estimated that livestock breeding at the European level was responsible for 78% of terrestrial biodiversity loss, 80% of soil acidification and air pollution, and 73% of water pollution, a climate emergency.

Facing climate change, French breeders are studying many ways to reduce their environmental impact. In a press release published in February on the occasion of the agricultural fair's opening, the National Professional Association of Livestock and Meat stated the goal of reducing the carbon footprint of the beef sector by 15% in 2025 compared to the 2015 beef sector.

For his part, Emmanuel Bernard, head of the livestock department at Interbev, said: "There is real awareness of the climate emergency throughout the sector. Because we as breeders are on the front line of global warming and its consequences."

Karen Barbier proposes moving "towards more extensive breeding and consuming more grass, thus reducing grain production for their feed and consequently the use of fertilizers or pesticides."

The French researcher noted that "we must also reduce imports of animal feed products... I think, for example, of soybean meal imported from Brazil, which requires a lot of transportation – today, overall, transportation accounts for more than a fifth of the carbon footprint of food."

She continued: "Why not redevelop mixed crop and livestock farms, where the breeder can grow a large part of what his animals need himself?"

The recommendations Emmanuel Bernard tries to make are to replace the nature of food, saying: "Indeed, I do not import any soy. My cows and calves are mainly fed grass, forage, and grains I grow myself on my farm. Of the 220 hectares of land, 125 hectares are meadows and 25 hectares are used for cultivation, reducing livestock numbers."

Karen Barbier returned saying: "But to move forward and change farming methods on a large scale, it will necessarily be essential to reduce herd sizes."

She continued: "These changes in practices would lead to good outcomes. For example, by reducing the share of meat in our diet and using grains and oilseeds for animals, we gain available agricultural land that we can use for direct human consumption."

Reducing livestock numbers is already a goal announced by France, as seen in its national low-carbon agriculture strategy, presented in June 2021, which aims to reduce by about 13% by 2030 – a less ambitious horizon than scientists recommend.

And on farms, this trend has already begun. Between 2000 and 2019, the total number of dairy and beef cows decreased by 8%, according to the Livestock Institute.

The same applies to sheep, which decreased by 8.3% from 2011 to 2020, and in the pork sector where the number of pigs dropped by 19% over ten years.

Barbier emphasized: "Starting this transition towards more environmentally friendly farming practices is necessary today to ensure better resilience of the agricultural system in the face of climate change and to strengthen our food sovereignty," noting that the animal breeding world is already suffering from a crisis.

She continued: "But to achieve this, we need stronger support from the European Union. We must ensure income sustainability during this transition period."

In 2019, a committee formed by the medical journal "The Lancet" estimated that Europeans should reduce their red meat consumption by 77% to respect the planet's boundaries and their health, while doubling consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes.