Will "burger laws" be needed to tackle climate change?

Consumers in the developing world will have to cut meat and dairy consumption to a burger every other day and three cheese sandwiches a week – just a tenth of current consumption – if food related emissions are not to increase by 2050, according to a report by the Food Climate Research Network (FCRN) at the University of Surrey.

Food related emissions account for about a third of global greenhouse gas emissions, the report said, adding that a failure to respond to the increased adoption of meat and dairy-rich "standard" diets in developing countries will have the dual effect of raising agriculture-related greenhouse gas emissions globally and increasing the chances of a global food shortage for the poorer sectors of society.

In April this year, global food prices reached a 30-year high in real terms as poor harvests and worldwide stock piling led to shortages for many nations.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told a summit in Rome that food production would have to rise by 50 per cent by 2030 to meet demand.

The UN has been quick to point out that the global poor will begin to starve if developed nations do not address the issue of food shortages.

The report recommends that governments in developed countries, such as the UK and US, use regulatory and fiscal instruments to encourage citizens to eat less meat, buy more seasonal field-grown vegetables, and prepare food in a more carbon efficient manner.

Cutting alcohol and luxury goods consumption is also important because they do not contribute nutritionally, but have significant carbon footprints, the report says.

"Study upon study has shown that awareness-raising campaigns alone are unlikely to work, particularly when it comes to more difficult changes," the report concludes, adding that wider legislation to address agriculture's carbon footprint will be required.

Recently the head of the United Nations intergovernmental panel on climate change, Rajendra Pachauri, urged consumers to have one meat-free day a week.

Meat is much more carbon and agriculture intensive to eat than vegetables, while dairy products also contribute to global warming through cows' methane emissions.