The world’s food systems are dangerously dependent on fossil fuels, and this addiction is driving both climate chaos and food insecurity.
“Fossil fuels are, disturbingly, the lifeblood of the food industry,” says Errol Schweizer, IPES-Food expert. “From chemical fertilisers to ultra-processed junk food, to plastic packaging, every step is fossil-fuel based.
Food production now contributes nearly one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions, with agriculture and land-use change driving much of the damage. Forests are cleared for cattle, and vast areas are transformed into chemically intensive, resource-heavy crop systems.
To be clear, there are many issues with the “food” industry, but when it comes to its role in climate change, fossil fuel use is not the biggest problem. If we include animal-based “food” production, then the climate impact is much greater than the “nearly one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions” quoted above.
