Without dietary change, net zero is impossible

The UK’s path to net zero is gaining momentum through technological transformation – electric vehicles are replacing petrol cars, heat pumps are taking over from gas boilers, and renewable energy is steadily displacing fossil fuels. Yet amid this wave of innovation, we’re overlooking a crucial ingredient in our climate solution recipe: the food on our plates.

The food, farming and wider land use system in the UK is responsible for about 130 million tonnes of CO2e pa, or about 30% of the UK’s territorial emissions.

Small numbers, big impact

According to the UK Climate Change Committee’s Seventh Carbon Budget, dietary shifts are expected to contribute just 6% of the total emissions reductions needed from household choices over the next 25 years for the UK to become net zero. At first glance, this figure seems negligible compared to the dramatic impact of ‘behind the scenes’ electrification.

But this statistic masks a deeper truth: while we have clear technological pathways to decarbonise transport and energy systems, which will also benefit the food system, dietary shifts are a crucial but challenging part of the UK’s decarbonisation pathway.

It’s challenging because, unlike the binary swaps of EVs for petrol cars or heat pumps for gas boilers, our food system is a complex web of supply chains, rural communities, cultural preferences, economic structures, and deeply ingrained habits. This complexity makes meaningful change far more challenging, but no less essential.

However, as other sectors rapidly decarbonise, the relative importance of food system transformation will only increase. While CO2 emissions from fossil fuels are set to plummet in the coming decades, the methane and nitrous oxide emissions from agriculture will persist without targeted intervention.

These greenhouse gases cannot be eliminated through clean energy solutions alone, making emissions from our dietary choices an increasingly significant portion of our remaining carbon budget. What seems like a small piece of the puzzle today will become a central challenge tomorrow.

Beyond carbon messaging

Food is personal. What we eat connects us to our heritage, brings us together in celebration, and forms part of our identity. Farmers, retailers, and consumers all have powerful emotional and economic stakes in maintaining familiar patterns.

This is precisely why tackling dietary change through the narrow lens of carbon reduction is ineffective. People don’t choose their baskets or evening meal based on greenhouse gas calculations. Pushing climate messaging in isolation often creates resistance, rather than engagement in all factions with a stake in the food system.

We’ve discovered the most powerful catalyst for food system transformation isn’t climate fear-mongering – it’s improving human wellbeing.

Globally, poor diet is the leading cause of preventable death, causing one in five deaths. Unhealthy diets also cost us greatly, reaching £268bn a year in the UK [Food, Farming and Countryside Commission]. Evidence shows us that the same dietary shifts that lower emissions – reducing unhealthy ultra-processed foods and processed meats, moderating red meat consumption, and embracing plant-rich diets – dramatically improve human health outcomes, including lower rates of obesity, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers.

By making dietary change a health-first movement, we engage people where they care most – their personal wellbeing – and can deliver greenhouse gas reductions as a welcome co-benefit.

The path forward

The UK stands at a critical juncture in its net zero journey. While technological innovations in energy and transport continue to accelerate, we now need ever-increasing focus on the role of the food system.

The challenge is undoubtedly complex, but so are the rewards. By focusing on the multiple benefits of dietary change – better human health outcomes, biodiversity restoration, and resilient food systems – we can drive meaningful progress.

The transition is already underway. Forward-thinking businesses, investors, and policymakers increasingly recognise that the food system must be central to our climate strategy, not an afterthought. At Planetary Alliance, we’re committed to ensuring food and diet become not just part of the conversation, but foundational to the solutions we build together.

Ali Morpeth & Mike Barry are the co-founders of Planetary Alliance