Why Care
Shifting towards plant-based diets can have significant health benefits. Reducing the consumption of animal-sourced foods could decrease global mortality by 6-10% by 2050. This transition has the potential to generate economic benefits of 1-31 trillion US dollars, equivalent to 0.4-13% of the global GDP in 2050. Plant-based diets are linked to lower disease risk and can help prevent biodiversity loss, reduce land use for agriculture, and save billions in healthcare costs. However, substantial changes to the global food system are necessary to achieve these benefits.
Support: Reduction of Global Mortality
Transitioning toward more plant-based diets that are in line with standard dietary guidelines could reduce global mortality by 6–10% and food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 29–70% compared with a reference scenario in 2050.
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1523119113
Support: Plant-based diets and their impact on health, sustainability, and the enviornment
For consumers who are new to plant-based diets and those who currently eat animal products frequently, it may be helpful to focus on incremental transitions towards plant-based diets by adopting plant-forward eating, in which meat is not necessarily excluded but is not the central feature of the meal. Gradual reductions in animal products like red meat and poultry may be easier to adopt and adhere to than more restrictive diets which exclude animal products entirely. Gradual shifts and more flexible dietary patterns also allow for religious and culturally appropriate applications of plant-based dietary recommendations.