Shift Key with Robinson Meyer and Jesse Jenkins If You Care About Food, You Have to Care About Land
50 snips
Jun 25, 2025 
Michael Grunwald, author of 'We Are Eating the Earth' and a prominent climate journalist, dives deep into the connections between food, land use, and climate change. He exposes how food production contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions but often gets sidelined in climate policies. Grunwald critiques the dilemmas of land use, especially between biofuels and food, while sharing his journey towards reducing beef consumption for environmental reasons. He emphasizes moving towards sustainable meat sources and highlights the need for policy reforms to support eco-friendly agricultural practices.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Food's Climate Impact Overlooked
- Food accounts for 25-33% of global greenhouse gas emissions but receives only 1.5-3% of global climate finance.
- Food climate policy is underdeveloped and often ineffective compared to the energy sector's progress.
Feeding More With Less Land
- Feeding a growing population requires 50% more food and 70% more meat, especially beef.
- The key is reducing land-intensive diets and increasing food yield per acre through technology.
Higher Yields Protect Nature
- Industrial agriculture is disliked but key for high yields needed to avoid expanding farmland.
- Low-yield farming uses 30-40% more land, worsening climate and biodiversity loss.
