The Meat of the Matter

New data about global food consumption confirms what we know: our meat based diets are our downfall.

Originally Published in Common Dreams, Oct 15th, 2025.

Earlier this month, the Eat-Lancet commission released new data about global food consumption. Its findings are sobering but not at all surprising. The report highlights the extreme destruction driven by our meat-based diets, emphasizing not only the threats to our health but the many environmental harms. We learn that our food systems are responsible for about a third of global green house gas emissions, with livestock alone contributing 12-19 percent. No surprise that “the diets of the richest 30% of the global population contribute to more than 70% of the environmental pressures from food systems.” The report also estimates that shifting our global eating patterns to follow its guidelines would prevent 15 million deaths per year—almost 30 percent of global death. Lest we forget that in 2015 the World Health Organization declared processed meat a carcinogen and red meat a likely carcinogen. Eat-Lancet’s findings, while shocking, are not new. They are the same song I’ve been singing since I wrote Diet for a Small Planet in 1971.

Chart by Vox

Of course, consumption goes hand in hand with production, and I find it just as necessary to highlight that side of things. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) data confirms suspicion: our production is misaligned with diets that benefit both us and the planet. Note the many parallels between these two charts.

Chart by Econofact

Meat remains the chief culprit. In an excellent article about Eat-Lancet’s report, Vox’s Kenny Torrella reminds readers of the strong industry-led backlash to the commission’s 2019 report. Since then, meat producers have lobbied and campaigned tirelessly to shift climate discussions way from our plates even as data about meat’s sizable impact compounds. Public appetite has shifted accordingly, with meat sales reaching a record high over $100 Billion in 2024.

We know what a healthy diet looks like--one rich in vegetables, legumes, seeds, and nuts. It will take a massive effort to get us there and thankfully Eat-Lancet offers many solutions--from using taxes and subsidies to shift dietary incentives, to school lunch programs, to reforms aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency at all levels of the food chain. There are so many clear steps we can take.

The report also highlights another key fact: Without “secure social foundations” all of this is moot. It speaks to the fact that the challenges we face from today’s food system are symptomatic of larger social imbalances. Consider the meat industry’s strong lobbying campaign: Such coordinated effort is only possible in a highly concentrated market. Over three-quarters of the global beef market is controlled by just four corporations. In pork, three firms account for two-thirds. Such profound power shared among so few hands is the story of today’s economy.

We need more reports like Eat-Lancet’s that both affirm the stakes of industry’s powerful hold and strongly assert that another way is possible. There are many doing this vital work from the Global Alliance for the Future of Food to Sentient Media. As we shift what’s on our plates, let’s uplift them, too.