Move Towards Plant-Based Catering to Address the Climate and Ecological Crises

This petition asks the University and Students’ Union to abide by their ethical and climate commitments and begin the move to plant-based catering on campus by transitioning menus to plant-based by default. In respect of this necessary action, we ask that the transition to plant-based by default begins in the 2026/27 academic year. Hence, we, the undersigned, call for a Student Council meeting to take place during which this motion will be discussed.

 

Man-made climate change is now scientific consensus, as is the necessity of immediate action.

Animal agriculture constitutes between 12-19.6% of total global emissions [1-3]. Research from 2020 found that even if we moved completely away from fossil fuels right now, we would not stop global warming going beyond 1.5 degrees [4]. However, they found that if we moved away from fossil fuels and towards a plant-based food system, this could stop global warming going beyond that limit. With a shift to a plant-based food system, agricultural emissions would decrease by 84-86% [5].

 

Animal agriculture is the primary driver of deforestation [6], with the destruction of forests and grasslands for agriculture being the dominant driver of biodiversity loss [7]. By transitioning to a plant-based food system, 76% of arable land currently used to produce food could be freed up [8]. This land could be reforested to increase carbon capture, sequestering an amount of carbon equivalent to about half of current global emissions [9]. As well as this, fishing is the main driver of the decimation of marine species populations [10] and roughly 70% of macroplastics (plastic >20cm) in the ocean come from fishing equipment [11].

 

In terms of health, the British Dietetic Association and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics have determined that an appropriately planned 100% plant-based diet is suitable for all ages [12,13]. It is associated with a lower risk of several chronic conditions, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and certain types of cancer [14-18]. The high fibre content in plant-based foods promotes gut health, aids in maintaining a healthy weight and enhances metabolic health.

 

Animal agriculture is also behind some of the world’s biggest public health threats. 36% of emerging zoonotic diseases [19] are associated with animal agriculture, due to the extremely unsanitary conditions associated with holding a large number of animals in close proximity. Consequently, animal agriculture is responsible for 70% of the world’s antibiotic use [20], making it a leading cause of antimicrobial resistance.

 

The world’s most vulnerable are already facing extreme hardship due to climate change. Extreme weather events, such as cyclones and droughts in the Pacific and Caribbean, are increasing [21]. Rising sea levels have made the effects of king tides worse for Small Island Developing States [22]. However, it is wealthy nations who are the cause of the vast majority of emissions, with the average person in a high-income country emitting more than 30 times as much as the average person in a low-income country [23] and we have a responsibility to move away from practices which cause such devastation.

 

Universities have a large influence on society. When they produce research saying we need to move to a plant-based food system to deal with the climate and ecological crises, but continue to support animal agriculture, it sends the wrong message. But if the university acts upon their research, and becomes a leader in sustainable food, this will set an example that will show governments, corporations and other institutions the necessity of transitioning to a plant-based food system.

 

This petition asks the University and Students’ Union to abide by their ethical and climate commitments and begin the move to plant-based catering on campus by transitioning menus to plant-based by default. In respect of this necessary action, we ask that the transition to plant-based by default begins in the 2026/27 academic year. Hence, we, the undersigned, call for a Student Council meeting to take place during which this motion will be discussed.

 

[1] Sejian, V. et al. (2015). Global Warming: Role of Livestock. In: Sejian, V., Gaughan, J., Baumgard, L., Prasad, C. (eds) Climate Change Impact on Livestock: Adaptation and Mitigation. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2265-1_10

[2] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: Livestock emission data at a glance, foodandagricultureorganization.shinyapps.io/GLEAMV3_Public/

[3] Xu et al. (2021), Global greenhouse gas emissions from animal-based foods are twice those of plant-based foods, https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/57aee0d5-0013-4182-abe7-55e1a817f553/content

[4] Michael A. Clark et al. ,Global food system emissions could preclude achieving the 1.5° and 2°C climate change targets.Science370,705-708(2020).DOI:10.1126/science.aba7357

[5] Springmann, M., Van Dingenen, R., Vandyck, T. et al. The global and regional air quality impacts of dietary change. Nat Commun 14, 6227 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-41789-3

[6] Peterson (2024), How Animal Agriculture Is Accelerating Global Deforestation, https://earth.org/how-animal-agriculture-is-accelerating-global-deforestation/

[7] Pedro Jaureguiberry et al. ,The direct drivers of recent global anthropogenic biodiversity loss.Sci. Adv.8,eabm9982(2022).DOI:10.1126/sciadv.abm9982

[8] J. Poore, T. Nemecek ,Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers.Science360,987-992(2018).DOI:10.1126/science.aaq0216

[9] Good Food Institute: Environmental benefits of alternative proteins, https://gfi.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Environmental-benefits-of-alternative-proteins-Dec-2023.pdf

[10] Kubiak (2019), “Marine Biodiversity in Dangerous Decline, Finds New Report”, https://www.nrdc.org/bio/lauren-kubiak/marine-biodiversity-dangerous-decline-finds-new-report#:~:text=Fishing%2C%20land%20use%20change%20are,over%20the%20past%2050%20years.

[11] Eriksen M, Lebreton LCM, Carson HS, Thiel M, Moore CJ, Borerro JC, et al. (2014) Plastic Pollution in the World's Oceans: More than 5 Trillion Plastic Pieces Weighing over 250,000 Tons Afloat at Sea. PLoS ONE 9(12): e111913. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0111913

[12] The Association of UK Dieticians, “Vegetarian, vegan and plant-based diets”, https://www.bda.uk.com/resource/vegetarian-vegan-plant-based-diet.html#:~:text=Plant%2Dbased%20diets%20can%20support,not%20meat%2C%20poultry%20or%20seafood

[13] Melina V, Craig W, Levin S. Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Vegetarian Diets. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2016 Dec;116(12):1970-1980. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2016.09.025. PMID: 27886704.

[14] Li Y, Wang DD, Nguyen XT, Song RJ, Ho Y, Hu FB, et al. Plant-based diets and the incidence of cardiovascular disease: the Million Veteran Program. BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health. 2023;:e000401. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjnph-2021-000401

[15] Murciano A, Malavolti M, Fairweather-Tait S, Paduano S, Vinceti M, Filippini T. Plant-based diets and risk of type 2 diabetes: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis. Br J Nutr. 2025 Aug 28;134(4):277-296. doi: 10.1017/S0007114525104157. Epub 2025 Aug 12. PMID: 40789787; PMCID: PMC12530962.

[16] Kahleova, H., Fleeman, R., Hlozkova, A. et al. A plant-based diet in overweight individuals in a 16-week randomized clinical trial: metabolic benefits of plant protein. Nutr & Diabetes 8, 58 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41387-018-0067-4

[17] Shah, S., Laouali, N., Mahamat-Saleh, Y. et al. Plant-based dietary patterns and breast cancer risk in the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC) study. Eur J Epidemiol 40, 947–958 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-025-01277-y

[18] Plant-based diet and colorectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gassur.2025.102232

[19] Emerging infectious zoonotic diseases: The neglected role of food animals, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.onehlt.2021.100323

[20] Hannah Ritchie and Fiona Spooner (2024): Large amounts of antibiotics are used in livestock, but several countries have shown this doesn’t have to be the case,https://archive.ourworldindata.org/20251209-133038/antibiotics-livestock.html

[21] IPCC Sixth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis, https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/

[22] United Nations: On the Frontline of Climate Crisis, Worlds Most Vulnerable Nations Suffer Disproportionately, https://www.un.org/ohrlls/news/frontline-climate-crisis-worlds-most-vulnerable-nations-suffer-disproportionately#:~:text=For%20Small%20Island%20Developing%20States,elevated%20for%20thousands%20of%20years.

[23] Hannah Ritchie (2023) - “Global inequalities in CO2 emissions” Published online at OurWorldinData.org. Retrieved from: 'https://archive.ourworldindata.org/20260119-070102/inequality-co2.html' [Online Resource] (archived on January 19, 2026).