MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Eat less meat and help climate change, says UN expert

People should eat less meat if they want to make a difference to climate change, according to a UN expert. Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, (IPCC) told London's The Observer in an interview people should have one meat-free day a week to tackle global warming.

Diet change is important because rearing animals is associated with greenhouse gas emissions and clearing land. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the livestock sector generates more greenhouse gas emissions as measured in CO2 equivalent – 18%– than transport. It is also a major source of land and water degradation. One of the easiest ways to solve these issues is to cut back on consumption, Dr Pachauri claims. Dr Pachauri – who is a vegetarian himself – told the newspaper: "In terms of immediacy of action and the feasibility of bringing about reductions in a short period of time, it clearly is the most attractive opportunity". "Give up meat for one day [a week] initially, and decrease it from there" he said. Dr Pachauri has chaired the Nobel Prize-winning panel since 2002, and has recently been re-appointed for a second six-year term. On Monday Dr Pachauri will speak at a meeting in London hosted by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF), an animal welfare group, which wants people to lower their consumption of meat in order to reduce the number of animals in factory farms. Last week Dr. Pachauri was elected for a second six year period as president of IPCC, the organization which was awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize together with former US vicepresident Al Gore.