29 meat farms emit methane from 100 oil companies

The methane emissions of 29 large meat and dairy producing companies, including the Italian Cremonini, match those of the top 100 fossil fuel companies:this is what emerges from a new report by the environmentalist NGO Greenpeace Nordic, which denounces how this contribution represents a serious threat to the climate crisis.All of this, according to the organization, could be mitigated by rreducing overproduction and intake of meat and dairy products in middle- and high-income countries – where it is often consumed in excess - thus reducing the average global temperature by 0.12°C by 2050.“For a long time we have observed the unbridled growth of large meat and dairy companies, as if the sector was somehow exempt from responsibility for the climate crisis, but this is not the case at all,” he commented Federica Ferrario, responsible for the Agriculture campaign of Greenpeace Italy.

The methane (CH4) it is a simple hydrocarbon and is the main component of natural gas.It is emitted during the decomposition of organic matter through agricultural activities, during the extraction and transportation of fossil fuels, and in landfills.It is considered a greenhouse gas due to its ability to trap heat in the atmosphere, thus contributing to global warming:in fact, over a period of 20 years, its heating power is 80 times greater than CO2.This means that, at the same mass, methane has a significantly greater impact on short-term global warming, unlike carbon dioxide which has been related to climate changes over the last hundreds of millions of years.

According to the relationship, between 1910 and 2015 there was a huge increase in the production and consumption of meat and dairy products, to the point that Livestock production has represented the second most important factor in increasing emissions in the global food system in recent decades.The study goes on to show the different paths humanity should consider taking between 2025 and 2050 to accelerate or slow global warming through the meat and dairy sectors.Given that, currently, it is estimated that the 5 largest meat and dairy companies (JBS, Marfrig, Minerva, Cargill and Dairy Farmers of America) emit more methane than BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies and Chevron combined, if industrial production were reduced to align ourselves with a different diet, a temperature increase of 0.12°C could be avoided by 2050 while, on the other hand, if the number of animals raised is not reduced, the sector would be responsible of a temperature increase of 0.32°C within the next 26 years.Although the figures may seem negligible, Greenpeace adds that for every 0.3°C of warming avoided, exposure to extreme heat could be reduced for 410 million people.

Furthermore, the document also mentions the Italian Cremonini group which, through Inalca, is one of the largest European producers of beef and number one in the Bel Paese.The Cremonini group also controls the Montana, Manzotin, Fiorani and Montagna brands and in 2022, according to estimates, has marketed a total of almost 480 thousand tonnes of meat, for a total of emissions equal to 0.32 megatonnes of methane.«We have often been faced with a reality in which it is the farmers or consumers who have to change, while these companies decide what farmers should produce, how much they should be paid and what we should eat.But now we know that a change in the system is possible.Governments must lead investments and policies to initiate change.Moving away from overproduction and overconsumption of meat and dairy, supporting farmers and dairy workers in a just transition.And in doing so, saving millions of lives by limiting global warming." he commented Federica Ferrario, head of the Greenpeace Italia Agriculture campaign.Finally, Greenpeace concludes by adding that, to keep attention on the topic high, ahead of the United Nations global climate summit in November (COP29), activists will try to make visible, through pink smoke bombs, the methane emissions of these companies and to "denounce the greenwashing attempts of the giants of the sector".

[by Roberto Demaio]