Food, Glorious Food. Eating to extinction

Description

This paper considers the relationship between the food consumed by humans in the UK, the environmental injustices which are suffered in other countries as a result of production methods, and the environmental degradation which affects all human and non-human animals. UN SDG 2 has had “Zero Hunger” as a goal since 2015. Despite this, 2 billion people globally do not have sufficient food, and a further 2 billion are overweight or obese. Billions of square metres of rainforest are being felled to supply the global beef and palm oil industries, threatening both biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
In the paper I demonstrate this is not sustainable – environmentally, economically or socially. As food supplies dwindle, mass migrations are inevitable, bringing with them risks of conflict and further deprivation. Without external intervention, whether through legal or economic nudges, or something more direct, humanity will eat not just itself, but other species into extinction.

Period	27 Jun 2023
Event title	UON Research Conference 2023: University of Northampton’s 2023 Annual Research Conference
Event type	Conference
Location	Northampton, United KingdomShow on map
Degree of Recognition	Regional