RE: Meat and dairy industries methane emissions

The Changing Markets Foundation and partner organizations inform the Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) that their estimated methane emissions are 0.9 million tonnes, contributing to a broader trend where major meat and dairy companies fail to disclose supply chain methane emissions. The letter demands that DFA set absolute emissions reduction targets aligned with a 1.5°C limit, establish separate methane targets, reduce animal numbers in supply chains, and align with UN standards for corporate net-zero pledges.

• A study of 15 of the largest meat and dairy companies found their combined methane emissions are approximately 12.8 million tonnes, representing 3.4% of all global anthropogenic methane emissions and 11.1% of livestock-related methane worldwide. These emissions exceed 80% of the European Union’s total methane footprint.
• The Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) is estimated to have methane emissions of roughly 0.9 million tonnes. Depending on the calculation factor used, methane represents either 59% (GWP100) or 81% (GWP20) of DFA's overall greenhouse gas emissions, which total 45.6 mt CO2e.
• There is a systemic lack of transparency among the examined companies; none disclose methane emissions from their supply chains, and only nine of the 15 companies report any level of overall greenhouse gas emissions.
• To limit global heating to 1.5°C, methane emissions must be reduced by 40-45% within the current decade.

APA

Changing Markets Foundation (2022). RE: Meat and dairy industries methane emissions. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Methane-Emissions_Letter-to-DFA-2.pdf

Chicago

Changing Markets Foundation. RE: Meat and dairy industries methane emissions. 2022. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Methane-Emissions_Letter-to-DFA-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Changing Markets Foundation |title=RE: Meat and dairy industries methane emissions |date=14 December 2022 |url=https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Methane-Emissions_Letter-to-DFA-2.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{changingmarketsfoundation2022meat, author = {{Changing Markets Foundation}}, title = {{RE: Meat and dairy industries methane emissions}}, publisher = {Changing Markets Foundation}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Methane-Emissions_Letter-to-DFA-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }