Livestock provide much more than nutritious food – Senior FAO official
Livestock production systems have come under increased scrutiny in recent times. Despite challenges aplenty, opportunities exist.
Delivering the keynote address at the recently held Teagasc Sustainability in Agriculture: the Science and Evidence Conference, Dr Badi Besbes, Chief of the Sustainable Animal Production, Feed and Genetics Group of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), shared the organisation’s perspective on the sustainable transformation of the livestock sector within the global agri-food system.
A growing world population, projected to rise by 2 billion to 9.6 billion people by 2050, will see increased demand and, as a result, Dr Besbes explained: “The demand for animal sourced food is estimated to increase by 20% by 2050 in comparison to 2020 and the demand for meat will increase the most.”
Despite predicted stagnation in demand in Europe and Oceania regions, Dr Besbes noted that much of this demand for animal sourced food would arise in Asia and Africa, adding: “It is expected that demand in Africa will increase in the future, mainly because the demand will double in most African countries by 2050 and this is essentially due to the growth in populations,” he said.
Pictured at the Teagasc Sustainability in Agriculture: the Science and Evidence Conference are pictured from left to right are: Professor Frank O’Mara, Teagasc Director; Dr Karen Daly, Acting Head of the Teagasc Environment and Land Use Research Centre in Johnstown Castle; Deirdre Ryan, Director of Sustainability and Quality Assurance,(Origin Green), at Bord Bia; and Dr Badi Besbes, International speaker, FAO Animal Production and Health Division.
Calorie and protein supply
Using FAOSTAT 2023 data to illustrate the makeup of diets globally, Dr Besbes explained that plants are the primary energy source in global diets, whereas livestock provide just 14% of the calories consumed by people globally, albeit with considerable variation across regions. Similar variation was also illustrated when diets were graphed in terms of protein supply, with livestock derived foods accounting for 32% of global protein consumption, with variation stretching from 10% in West Africa to 60% in North America.
Much more than nutritious food
Along with being a source of calories and protein, Dr Besbes explored further opportunities the livestock sector has to offer, highlighting the role it plays in ecosystem services, resilience and climate adaption, employment, poverty reduction and rural development, gender equality and food security and nutrition.
“The livestock sector has a lot to offer for a better life and for better health of the people and the planet,” he added, after which he highlighted the important role milk can play in at all stages of the human lifecycle, right through from pregnancy to old age.
“Animal sourced foods are highly nutrient dense. They provide high quality protein and a number of essential fatty acids and highly bioavailable and bioactive micronutrients, minerals and vitamins,” he added.
To further reinforce this point, Dr Besbes referenced a study by Adesogan in 2019 which examined the relationship between meat consumption and stunting, summarising this as: “Countries with the lowest consumption of meat showed the highest rate of stunting in children”.
After highlighting the nutritional benefits of livestock sourced foods, Dr Besbes explained that livestock systems provide much more than nutritious food by highlighting the important economic, social and cultural role such systems play across the world.
“We estimate that the livestock sector worldwide contributes between 20% and 40% of the agricultural GDP,” he commented.
“In some countries, especially in arid lands, livestock provide much more than that because it is difficult to produce crops in this environment. In counties like Somalia, the livestock sector represents 80% of the agricultural GDP.
“Livestock also contributes to women empowerment and gender equality, especially in developing counties. In low and mid income counties, the bulk of animal products are produced by small scale producers.”
Providing an example of this, Dr Besbes said: “More than 30% of the world’s milk is produced in South Asia and in particular in India, but the farm size in India is less than two cows per household and this is really important to take into consideration.
“In rural areas in Sub-Saharan Africa, women represent more than 70% of chicken owners. For small scale producers, including women producers, livestock provides food and income for these people.”
In such regions, he noted that livestock can aid household resilience, acting as an income source in times of need or an asset to obtain credit from lending institutes.
Challenges
Although the opportunities and benefits of livestock systems were outlined in depth, Dr Besbes didn’t shy away from their associated challenges, focusing specifically on the areas of animal diseases, antimicrobial resistance, greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and feed requirements.
Globally, he noted, 70% of the pathogens affecting humans have an animal origin, with such zoonotic diseases having major impacts on small-scale producers and the rural poor. Antimicrobial resistance, especially preventing the misuse and overuse of antibiotics, was also referenced, with Dr Besbes noting the importance of ensuring antibiotics remain effective in human health.
On the topic of feed requirements, a point often referenced by those questioning the need for livestock production systems, Dr Besbes explained: “We know that the livestock sector is the biggest user of land. We estimate that the livestock area uses 40% of arable land and the conversion of forest in certain regions into agricultural land is driven by the demand for animal feed.
“We also know that the livestock sector consumes 30% the cereal production, but most of this cereal production is used for monogastrics – pig and poultry production. The feed used for the livestock sector as a whole, 80% of that is not human edible and this percentage is even higher for ruminants, only 5% of the cereal is consumed by ruminants.”
An overview of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from livestock production systems was also presented, with the FAO estimating that the livestock sector accounts for 6.2 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalents per year, representing 40% of total greenhouse gas emissions from the world’s agri-food system.
Dr Besbes’ full presentation to the Teagasc Sustainability in Agriculture: the Science and Evidence Conference is available to view below:
More insights and the full proceedings from the conference are available to view here.