According to Daniel Moran, a researcher at NTNU’s Department of Energy and Process Engineering, the global food system is the biggest threat to biological diversity and one of the worst drivers of the climate crisis.
Moran was lead author for a large study that has produced digital maps showing the pressure that the global food system exerts on the environment and climate. He collaborated with 16 researchers, including from the University of Leeds and the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Of particular interest is a map, showing the overall impact of food production on the environment.
From beige (least) to red (most), the map shows the overall impact of food production on the environment. Click here to get a larger image.
The map shows how India and China exert the greatest pressure on the environment. However, the coastal areas of northern Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and northern France have the greatest environmental impact in northern Europe.
“No one has done this before, and the mapping has been a gigantic task,” the researcher says.
Source: enn.com