The methane emissions from the 45 world’s major meat and dairy processing companies dwarfs that of all EU member states and the UK combined, a new report found on Monday (20 October) .
The report, from Foodrise, Friends of the Earth, and Greenpeace, and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy also revealed that these companies accounted for 1.02 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases (in CO₂ equivalents) in a single year. As a country, they would be the world’s ninth-largest polluter.
The more greenhouse gases are in the atmosphere, the hotter it gets and the harder it is to achieve the Paris Climate Agreement target of keeping global warming at 1.5°C.
Among the 45 companies researched in the report, the five largest — JBS, Marfrig, Minerva (all in Brazil), Tyson and Cargill (both US) — generated approximately 480 million tonnes of greenhouse gases (in CO₂ equivalents) in 2023.
This exceeds emissions from major oil and gas companies like Chevron, Shell or BP and makes meat and dairy production one of the world’s highest-emitting sectors.
Within the sector experts estimate that cattle burps and manure cause the most emissions.
The report found that the Brazil-based meat company JBS alone accounted for nearly a quarter of the total emissions for the 45 companies, being responsible for more than 240 million tonnes of greenhouse gases (in CO₂ equivalents).
More than half of the emissions are methane, the report found.
The global meat and dairy sector accounts for an estimated 12 percent to 19 percent of total human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. Most of the emissions come from burps of cattle and manure.
Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that contributes heavily to climate change.
The UN states that global methane emissions must drop 45 percent by 2030 to achieve the Paris limit. According to the report, this target is unlikely to be met, with livestock methane emissions projected to grow 30 percent by 2050 unless policies intervene.
Cutting methane emissions would rapidly slow down global warming because it is a more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2.
As COP30 approaches in Brazil — a country that hosts two of the five largest meat and dairy polluters —Shefali Sharma of Greenpeace Germany called for governments to put food system reform on the agenda.
She said: “Farms that restore nature and communities, not corporate-controlled factories, should be at the centre of our food system. It’s not too late for governments to commit to such a transition in their climate plans coming out of this COP.”
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