We already know that we should eat less meat for the sake of the planet – the United Nations has said reduced meat consumption would help curb greenhouse emissions. While many ardent environmentalists are vegetarian, initiatives like Meatless Monday are trying to encourage all of us to do our part, as well.

So meat production helps cause global warming. But did you know that climate change might also affect the quality of meat? According to New Scientist: “Pork chops will become soggier and paler as the world warms, while steaks could be dark and smelly”.

It’s all to do with the effects of heat on the animal’s energy, or glycogen, reserves. The flesh from pigs that become heat-stressed on the way to the slaughterhouse will acidify more quickly, so the meat resembles “soggy white blotting paper”. While heat-stressed cows run out of glycogen before slaughter, darkening their meat.

It all adds up to less “mmm” and more “hmm”.

Millions of cattle and sheep make long sea journeys every year in cramped, over-heated conditions as part of the livestock trade. So far the best solution scientists have been able to come up with has been to spike the drinking water with sports energy drinks. But if we are to keep eating meat in a climate-changed world, we are going to have to come up with a better solution.

We could start by scaling back meat consumption – most of us could handle more plant foods in our diet anyway – and focusing on quality over quantity. Then we could decentralise the meat industry, rear livestock in natural conditions on farms, transport them to a local abbatoirs only a few miles away and eat them close to where they were raised. Doesn’t it just make sense?

Image: The Busy Brain

We all have different reasons why we want to be slim. For some it’s image – self-confidence. For others, it’s for health. I doubt, however, that many of us think of dropping pounds as way to help the planet.

A new study published this week in the International Journal of Epidemiology suggests that maybe we should. The study maintains that a leaner population would be much better for the environment. Consider: food production is a major contributor to global warming. So is the transport-related pollution that results from moving food around the world.

In nearly every country, the average body mass index (BMI) is growing, and as a result the world as a whole is getting fatter. But if we all started to reduce our food consumption, this would change. According the researchers, a lean population of 1 billion people would emit 1.0 GT (1,000 million tonnes) less carbon dioxide equivalents per year compared with a heavy one.

Image: Pink Sherbet Photography