Growing the Good (Changing Markets Foundation et al.)

This report contains an executive summary. Here it is, reproduced exactly.

The animal agriculture industry is at a cross roads. As this report lays out, a perfect storm is approaching that, one way or another, will bring disruption and change. Transformation of the industry could bring significant benefits in terms of improved public health, better animal welfare and the unique ability to tackle multiple environmental crises simultaneously.

Faced with the urgent need to drastically reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to meet internationally agreed climate targets, our report finds a shocking absence of policies to drive and accelerate low-carbon transition in the food sector. If the transformation is not quick and well managed, the animal agriculture will stumble across various ecological constraints, including water and land availability; worsening climate change will amplify these constraints, harming the productivity and viability of the sector.

Crucially, the game-changing innovation in modern computing, biotechnology and food science is now being applied to plant-based and cultured animal products in ways that were previously impossible, leading to an explosion of new products. Improving the price and quality of these products, and the ability to scale them, could lead to dramatic changes. Together with shifting cultural attitudes to the consumption of animal products - especially among the younger generation - this could mark a turning point, disrupting the market just like renewable energy is revolutionising the energy sector.

Low-carbon transition in food brings a unique opportunity. Reduction in demand for animal products would be a relatively easy and cheap way to mitigate a significant share of global GHG emissions, especially short-lived but potent methane emissions. It would also liberate vast areas of land, which will need to be maximised as a carbon sink and for nature conservation. This report concludes that governments must step up by putting in place policies to reduce excessive meat and dairy consumption, as part of a general shift towards healthier diets and better food-production systems.