Dave Luo, 3 July 2023

The copyright in this report belongs to Asia Research and Engagement Pte. Ltd. (ARE)

 

At COP21 in Paris (2015), the Paris Agreement was signed with aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century below 2° Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5° Celsius.

According to the Asia Research and Engagement’s study on Asia’s Protein Transition (2023), in order for the Paris Agreement targets and climate-safe outcome in Asia to be achieved by 2060, the production of animal protein will need to start declining by 2023 and transition to plant-based and alternative forms of protein. This report quantifies the minimum alternative proteins needed to achieve the region’s net-zero climate goals in 10 major Asian markets from 2020 through 2060. The target emissions for each market’s protein sectors are relied on recommendations from the Food, Land and Agriculture Guidance (FLAG) published in 2022 by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), a partnership between the CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resources Institute, and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Indonesia’s animal protein production – particularly of chicken, dairy, eggs, beef, and fish – is intensifying rapidly. Per-capita and total consumption are growing alongside GDP. Indonesia imports some of its soy (for animal feed) and beef from Argentina and Brazil, but Indonesia’s biggest deforestation occurs at home from clearing for pasture and palm plantations. We project that Indonesia will not be able to decarbonise its protein sector without ending deforestation and growth in industrial animal production by roughly 2030 and developing alternative proteins to around 60% of protein volume by 2060.

How much each nation stands to gain from reducing existing emissions depends on demographics, income levels, and environment. Indonesia itself will reap dramatic reductions by eliminating deforestation in their animal feed and beef supply chains, but rising consumption will erase the gains. 

Other benefits beyond climate change are lower land, water, animal and antibiotic use, less pollution, avoided deforestation and biodiversity loss, and less risk of diseases linked to industrial production systems and overconsumption of meat.

 

See here for the complete report.