Carbon Footprint of Meat Pizza Seven Times Greater than Vegan Pizza
MEAT PIZZA CARBON FOOTPRINT
39.77 kg CO₂ (greenhouse gas emissions)
Contains whole wheat flour, olive oil, tomatoes, onions, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese,
ground beef, bacon, and mushrooms
VEGAN PIZZA CARBON FOOTPRINT
5.53 kg CO2eq (greenhouse gas emissions)
Contains whole wheat flour, olive oil, tomatoes, onions, dairy-free cheese, meat-free crumbles, broccoli, and mushrooms
The Vegetarian Resource Group used carbon emission data compiled by Our World in Data and based on research by Poore & Nemecek (2018) and Clark et al. (2022) to estimate the carbon footprints of the same size vegan pizza vs. meat pizza. We determined that meat pizza has a carbon footprint roughly seven times greater than vegan pizza. The difference in our vegan pizza is greater than that determined by other researchers, who used dairy cheese for the vegetarian pizza (where the meat pizza carbon footprint was four times higher that vegetarian pizza).
EAT SEVEN TIMES AS MUCH VEGAN PIZZA AS MEAT PIZZA FOR THE SAME CARBON FOOTPRINT!
For complete article and references, see: vrg.org/blog/2023/08/12/carbon-footprint-of-vegan-vs-meat-pizza
Note: Mathematically, CO2eq is calculated by multiplying the mass of the emissions of one type of greenhouse gas (usually expressed in kilograms or tons) by its GWP (global warming potential). For this report, calculated CO2eq values are based on a 100-year timescale (GWP100).
© 2024 The Vegetarian Resource Group, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203
Visit our website vrg.org and email us at [email protected]
Adapted from content by Jeanne Yacoubou, MS
Photo and design by Hannah Kaminsky with advice from Whitney McVerry
