From the University of Edinburgh via Eurekalert, just scratching the surface of this press release suggests something’s gone sour, the numbers they cite don’t make for much concern in the larger context of things. See below.
Milk poured down Britain’s kitchen sinks each year creates a carbon footprint equivalent to thousands of car exhaust emissions, research shows
Scientists say the 360,000 tonnes of milk wasted in the UK each year creates greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 100,000 tonnes of CO2. The study by the University of Edinburgh says this is the same as is emitted by about 20,000 cars annually.
The research identifies ways that consumers could also help curb greenhouse gas emissions – by reducing the amount of food they buy, serve and waste. They also suggest the food industry could reduce emissions by seeking more efficient ways to use fertilisers.
Researchers also say halving the amount of chicken consumed in the UK and other developed countries to levels eaten in Japan could cut greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 10 million cars off the road.
Figures show that if average chicken consumption in developed countries fell from the current level of 26kg each per year to the Japanese average of about 12kg each by 2020, global emissions from poultry would fall below current levels, despite increased output from the developing world. This would cut the predicted global output of nitrous oxide, a key greenhouse gas, from this source by almost 20 per cent, based on current growth rates.
Demand for food, particularly meat, is expected to increase over the next few decades as the world’s population continues to grow and emerging countries consume more.
Agriculture is the biggest source of nitrous oxide, a powerful greenhouse gas that is emitted by soil and fertilisers. Producing meat produces more emissions than growing crops, as large amounts of cereals are grown to feed livestock.
Researchers arrived at their findings by examining data for global agricultural production of greenhouse gases together with consumption of food in various regions of the world. The study, carried out in collaboration with the University of Aberdeen and partners in Europe and the US, was published in Nature Climate Change.
Dr David Reay of the University of Edinburgh’s School of GeoSciences, who led the study, said: “Eating less meat and wasting less food can play a big part in helping to keep a lid on greenhouse gas emissions as the world’s population increases.”
Well, wasting food is never a good thing, I agree with that, but is this a big problem or not? I decided to have a look at the numbers.
From DairyCo Datum in the UK, here’s a table of worldwide milk production based on FAO data, highlight mine:
The 360,000 tonnes of milk said to be wasted in the press release seems like a huge number, but when compared to 13.96 million tonnes of milk produced in the UK in 2010, it is literally a drop in the milk bucket. It works out to about 2.6%, which given such a perishable product, isn’t a bad number at all. I expected it to be much higher, like 25% the way the article was written.
And since they are concerned about global warming, the comparison globally:
Even if the UK stopped wasting all milk, the impact against the global milk carbon footprint is nil.
And while they bemoan the waste in the press release, they offer no solution. What are citizens supposed to do with spoiled milk? Drink it? I’ll bet this will go over well in UK schools like this program: Climate Craziness of the Week – let the kids freeze, all I want for Christmas is a zero carbon footprint
A headmaster at a British school decided a great lesson in sustainability would be to turn off the heat for a day. In December:
Pupils at Ansford Academy in Castle Cary, Somerset, were forced to grip their pens through thick gloves and wear their coats and hats in class as temperatures dropped to 1C. The school’s headmaster, Rob Benzie, shut down the radiators as an experiment to show students how the school could cut its carbon footprint.
The milk waste researchers also seem clueless about how the carbon cycle works, as if somehow that milk if consumed magically loses all of its carbon content via the other route that eventually ends up down the sewer.
Idiots.
Each person on the Earth breathes out about a third of a tonne of CO2 every year. This means that all of us in the UK breathe out around 20 million tonnes a year. This obviously dwarves the figures quoted here. What utter nonsense.
It can only be a matter of time before these morons seriously suggest that we stop breathing in order to cut our carbon footprint.
Chris
drink cola or soda pop.CO2 is released at once……..
Eating less meat will increase global warming. The amount of residual heat on earth depends on the amount of energy received from the sun less the energy reimmitted and the amount consumed growth movement and cell repair. Cut out the cow out of the cycle will result in additional residual energy as it cannot consume the grass which does not require additional energy to repair itself. Very similar to Keynsian economics.
As for the fish the UK can start a scientific whale hunting expetition to see the effect of climate change on whales that will put fish on the table and they can use the blubber for heating. Nothing is wrong with it Considering scientist have been catching and tagging penguins. At the end of the research they concluded that the penguins are doing fine despite all the alarmism of global warming except for the legions that was tagged. As the ugly tag decreased their chance to find a breeding partner and less aerodynamic in the water so less likely to escape predators.
tonyb says:
May 14, 2012 at 1:25 am
“……..three times a day as we brush our teeth….”
***************************************************************
It’s well known in the US that we Britons only clean our teeth once a month. :o[]
“Researchers arrived at their findings by examining data for global agricultural production of greenhouse gases together with consumption of food in various regions of the world. The study, carried out in collaboration with the University of Aberdeen and partners in Europe and the US, was published in Nature Climate Change.”
Says it all really! The anti-meat eaters don’t like something. They’ve done tobacco (with some faked numbers & creating accounting), they’re working on alcohol (with some fake numbers as usual), now it’s meat. What’s next folks? The trick is to always move on to the next subjeyc before anyone can get to grips with the previous one!
I would say that these people have finally “lost their mind” but that happened a long time ago.
Mike86 says: May 13, 2012 at 7:46 pm
Imagine how low the carbon footprint would get if they could just get people to stop eating all together.
The obvious ‘correct’ solution.
Before even reading the article, it was obvious this “concern” could be the equivalent of consuming the milk and the resulting GHG production both internal and external to the body. Only had to read to the first line of he second paragraph to get all the information I needed.
The research identifies ways that consumers could also help curb greenhouse gas emissions – by reducing the amount of food they buy, serve and waste.
Researchers also say halving the amount of chicken consumed in the UK and other developed countries to levels eaten in Japan could cut greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 10 million cars off the road.
======================================
Didn’t work for Japan……Japan produces almost 3 times the CO2 as the UK
Maybe they used a survey of students to derive their estimates of milk wastage. Anyone who remembers the delights of the shared fridge in a communal students’ kitchen will surely recall discovering cartons of ancient milk…
Old joke:
(New answer: Because their power comes from offshore wind).
Next we need a study on how much British “carbon footprint” could be reduced if they simply made pancakes with their sour milk instead of putting it down the sink.
i buy milk , I dont use much of it before its off,
so?
I use it for controlling powdery mildew in the garden, for chickens and for dogs..
however you americans will find that spilt milk is considered an enviro hazard, see EPA
and then
in Aus the companies are using whey cheese waste adding it back to milk to save disposal costs and thereby making 2x the profit by watering milk down and saving disposal costs.
exposed recently on MSM.
a lot of us have been saying the milk isnt what we used to drink, and ,,,we were right, it sure is not.
this is supermarket brands but also big name processor labels and the flavoured sugary goo.
ps soy milk should be made at home not bought, simply add a cup of soy flour to a litre of water bring to near boil and let sit=milk…..
Mike Jonas says:
May 13, 2012 at 8:21 pm
The carbon in ‘off’ milk came from cows.
The carbon in milk in cows came from grass.
The carbon in grass came from the atmosphere.
The carbon in the atmosphere came from ‘off’ milk.
Are you implying some sort of “carbon cycle”?
If, instead of pouring the milk down the drain, they sprayed it on the grass or added it to a cows food, would this upset the cycle balance?
More study, more grant money…
🙂
The new catch phrase:
Got carbon?
Looks like the page at the Daily Mail has vanished. The link regarding the school headmaster turning off the heat. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2070496/Staff-parents-fury-head-turns-schools-heating-save-planet.html
A whole bunch more milk and other perishables will go bad when their windmills stop turning.
This is the problem when one accepts the CO2 causes catastrophic warming. Since almost all natural and anthropological activity creates CO2 emissions, we are engaging in warfare against life itself. It becomes a collective form of suicide. How did we become so addled and why can only a few, see what we are doing?? GK
Mike86 says:
May 13, 2012 at 7:46 pm
Imagine how low the carbon footprint would get if they could just get people to stop eating all together.
________________________
That’s the plan.
Listen to a committed “Green” and they’ll eventually tell you how the planet would be so much better off without people.
Those greenies are often people with deep psychological issues and they serve as tools of a handful of elites with power and money who have the same plan- reduce humanity and leave all the wide open spaces for a privileged few.
Has anyone come up with an idea of Carbon Capture for the farting cows?? As the cows emit the “key greenhouse gas” methane which causes the Global Warming, someone has to think of the children, and offer to collect the cows farts.
May I suggest the Uni of Edinburgh as a fitting scientific establishment to carry out a feasibility study?
Imagine how much no one would care about carbon foot prints at all if only we could convince people afflicted with ‘carbon madness’ to stop eating altogether?
This isn’t the only lunacy going round the UK at moment.
“Join the Caravan for Climate Jobs: 12th – 25th May 2012
Fighting for a million new jobs
Fighting the threat of catastrophic climate change”
http://www.climate-change-jobs.org/caravan
I intend to pay them a visit – perhaps I should take some rancid old milk along, and accidentally spill it?
I had to tweet Mike Jonas’s great round .
Willis says
“I fear I don’t understand what’s happening. Why are the Brits pouring their milk down the sink? My working hypothesis is that it’s spoiled milk from power interruptions to their refrigerators when the wind isn’t blowing … but heck, maybe it’s some kind of UK cultural thing, what do I know?”
No it isn’t that Willis. We have “use by” dates printed on most foodstuffs in the UK. The younger indoctrinated ones stick rigidly to these dates. If it is past the printed date then it is disposed of. Not just milk but many other foods also.
We older people have some “now uncommon sense”, and if it still smells good we use it! Not good for supermarket sales though! It will rely on a real catastrophe to change this mindset!
Well obviously, at least around the University of Edinburgh, the atmospheric nitrous oxide level has to be high (no pun intended). The researchers had to have been high on laughing gas (nitrous oxide) or something to come up with this BS.
Jay Davis
dave ward says:
May 14, 2012 at 7:45 am
From the website:
Photos of their “PA’s”:
http://www.soundvsystems.org/cat_list.html
When visiting an event, make sure they don’t run the “PA” from the car’s engine, as that would not be sustainable.
Wow they actually counted the milk and the carbon.
Now I know how many will fill the Albert Hall.