Red meat and dairy more expensive, chicken meat and vegetables cheaper / “We must stop destroying the planet while we feed ourselves”, says a World Bank official

Cows and milk are put aside, chicken and broccoli are preferred. That is if the World Bank follows its plan, of course, writes Politico.

In a new document, the international financial lender suggests redirecting the billions rich countries spend to boost CO2-rich products such as red meat and dairy in favor of more climate-friendly options such as beef poultry, fruits and vegetables. The bank claims this is one of the most cost-effective ways to save the planet from climate change.

This politically sensitive recommendation is one of several suggestions the World Bank offers to reduce pollution in the agricultural and food sectors. They are responsible for almost a third of global greenhouse gas emissions.

“We need to stop destroying the planet while we feed ourselves,” Julian Lampietti, the World Bank’s global engagement manager in the bank’s global agriculture and food practice, told Politico.

The document comes at a diplomatically strategic time, as countries signatories to the Paris Agreement – the global pact calling for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius – prepare to update their climate plans by the end of the year 2025.

With the world needing to accelerate emissions cuts to keep the goals of the Paris Agreement alive, the World Bank wants officials to pay more attention to agriculture and the food industry, which the bank says have long been neglected and underfunded.

According to the report, countries need to direct $260 billion each year to these sectors to get serious about eliminating emissions by 2050 – a common goal for developed economies. This is 18 times more than countries currently invest.

According to the World Bank, governments can partially close this gap by redirecting subsidies for red meat and dairy products towards lower carbon alternatives. The switch is one of the most cost-effective ways rich countries – which are estimated to generate around 20% of global agri-food emissions – can reduce demand for highly polluting food, she argues.

The result, the bank adds, would essentially be to include climate impacts in the cost of food.

“Fully pricing animal foods to reflect their true planetary costs would make low-emission food options more competitive,” the report said, noting that switching to plant-based diets could save twice as much many planet-warming gases than other methods.

The demand for meat and dairy products represents almost 60% of emissions from the agri-food sector.

Lampietti cautioned against focusing too much on “what not to do,” encouraging a greater focus on “what to do.” Food is an “intensely personal choice,” he added, saying he feared what should be a data-driven debate could turn into a culture war battle.

“The big concern here is that people are starting to use this as a political football,” he said.