New research on agricultural emissions has shown that the carbon footprint of beef and lamb produced in New Zealand (NZ) is among the lowest in the world.
The carbon footprint of exported NZ sheepmeat and beef, including transport emissions, is frequently lower than that of domestic products and other international competitors in China and the US.
Sheepmeat has a carbon footprint of just under 15kg of CO2 equivalent emissions/kg (CO2-e/kg), while that of beef is just under 22kg, which makes NZ red meat one of the most carbon efficient in the world.
Researchers compared the emissions of red meat in NZ, which is the second biggest exporter of lamb and one of the largest beef exporters, to the carbon footprints of China, Japan, the US, and the UK.
The new study comes as the NZ government seeks to introduce a farm-level, split-gas levy for pricing farm emissions from 2025, under which farmers would have to pay levies related to the amount of methane and long-lived gases emitted.
Beef and sheep emissions
The carbon footprint of NZ sheepmeat is 6.01kg CO2-e/kg of liveweight compared to an average of 14.20kg CO2-e/kg in China, the UK and the US. That of beef (including dairy beef) is 8.97kg of CO2-e/kg, compared to 14.1kg in Japan and the US.
The average total footprint of sheepmeat and beef exported to these markets is 14.73kg CO2-e/kg and 21.94kg CO2-e/kg respectively, which is lower than in most markets that NZ exports to and that of red meat sent to those markets by other exporters.
The peer-reviewed life-cycle assessment (LCA) study conducted by AgResearch has been published in The Environment Review Assessment, and was commissioned by Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) and the Meat Industry Association (MIA).
The study considers all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions emitted on farm and along the supply chain until the product is consumed, including packaging, food waste, shipping and transportation.
The LCA was calculated using the international standard Global Warming Potential (GWP) 100 approach for converting methane to CO2 equivalent to enable valid comparisons.
Split-gas approach
Scientists have criticised the standard method currently used for characterising the effect of emissions on the climate in the form of a carbon footprint or CO2-equivalent emissions, which does not reflect the impact on global temperatures.
The split-gas approach considers the different impact of methane, compared to long-lived gases including nitrous oxide from livestock and synthetic fertiliser, and CO2 from urea.
Therefore, AgResearch also measured the carbon footprint of NZ beef and sheepmeat using GWP*, which determines a carbon footprint based on a product’s contribution to the warming of the planet over a period of time rather than total emissions.
Using this method, and accounting for carbon sequestration by trees on farm, NZ sheepmeat has not added any additional warming over the last 20 years, and absolute GHG emissions from sheep and beef farms have decreased by 30% since 1990, according to B+LNZ.
While continuous improvement is required, chief executive of B+LNZ, Sam McIvor said NZ red meat is world leading when compared to other major producers. He added:
“NZ sheep and beef farmers are making outstanding progress in improving the sector’s carbon footprint, through world-best animal husbandry, by planting and retaining trees and other woody vegetation on-farm to absorb GHG emissions and pioneering the use of low-methane animals.”
He added that NZ has recognised that methane is a short-lived gas and therefore needs to be reduced rather than cut to zero, however, NZ methane reduction targets are too high.
Therefore, B+LNZ urges ministers and officials to reassess methane reduction targets. Farmers across the country recently protested against government proposals which are up for public consultation until November 18.
