AFOLU (diet)
The food sector is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Transitioning to healthier, more sustainable diets is key to achieving climate goals.
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The agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector contributes around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions (1), mostly arising from methane produced by livestock and CO2 released by deforestation, with additional contributions from nitrous oxide emissions.
Recent estimates suggest that around 11 million premature deaths could be averted every year by 2040 by following a sustainable and healthy diet, high in plant-based foods and low in red meat and dairy products (2).
In the Pathfinder review, actions in the AFOLU sector via the diet pathway had the second greatest benefit to health when compared to other sectors, saving on average 300 years of life per 100,000 people per year. Dietary change was also linked with large mitigation intensities.
Fresh fruit and vegetables being sold at a market
Data from the Umbrella Review
Climate and human health impacts of mitigation action in the AFOLU sector involving dietary change. There were 76 included mitigation actions from 8 different countries, as well as 15 global actions. Download the data below.
References:
1) IPCC, 2022: Summary for Policymakers. Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change.
2) Willett W, Rockström J, Loken B, et al. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. Lancet 2019; 393: 447–92.