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Global analysis reveals age as overlooked driver of food-related climate emissions
A new international study published in Nature Food reveals that age plays an important but often overlooked role in shaping global food-related greenhouse gas emissions. The study shows that dietary emissions can vary substantially across people's life stages, reflecting differences in nutritional needs, demographic change and evolving dietary patterns. Effective mitigation of dietary emissions therefore requires age-sensitive approaches.
The study, published by an international team of researchers led by scientists from the Energy and Sustainability Research Institute Groningen (ESRIG), University of Groningen, examined dietary emissions and nutritional quality across 149 countries, 22 age groups and five time periods between 2000 and 2019.
The research found that adolescents and young adults consistently have the highest per capita dietary greenhouse gas emissions globally, while population aging has become an increasingly important driver of total dietary emissions.
Who contributes to dietary emissions?
"Older people are often seen as having a higher contribution to carbon emissions. We found a more nuanced pattern: The increasing contribution of seniors to dietary emissions is driven largely by population aging (a rising share of seniors in the population), rather than more carbon-intensive diets among seniors," says Yanxian Li, an ESRIG Ph.D. student at the time the research was conducted and now with Chongqing University.
"Understanding who contributes to dietary emissions is essential for designing effective climate solutions. Sustainable diets, therefore, need to account for differences across life stages, nutritional requirements and regional contexts," emphasizes Yuli Shan, professor at the University of Birmingham and a co-author of the study.
Meat, dairy and changing diets influence emissions
The study found that meat and dairy products remain major sources of dietary emissions, particularly in high-income countries. In emerging economies, changing consumption patterns also played an important role. For example, increases in dietary emissions in China were largely associated with increased meat consumption, while a shift to more dairy products contributed significantly to food-related emissions growth in India.
The researchers emphasize that reducing emissions must be balanced with improving nutrition. "In many low- and middle-income countries, dietary shifts toward certain nutrient-rich foods have improved nutritional quality, but have also contributed to rising emissions. This means that simply reducing certain types of food may have unintended health effects," highlights Klaus Hubacek, professor at the University of Groningen and a co-author of the study.
Moving beyond one-size-fits-all climate solutions
The study identifies several pathways for reducing dietary emissions, including improving food production systems, supporting sustainable dietary transitions and tailoring interventions to local conditions.
The researchers conclude that climate mitigation strategies should move beyond universal approaches and account for demographic shifts, dietary patterns, nutritional needs and differences between countries and regions.
The authors emphasize that effective mitigation of dietary emissions requires age-sensitive approaches. "For younger populations, this highlights the importance of education and sustainable food environments, including approaches that encourage schoolchildren to switch to healthier meals with lower carbon emissions," adds Prajal Pradhan, an associate professor at the University of Groningen and a co-author.
The research assessed emissions from 141 food products, combining global food consumption data, dietary surveys, population statistics and consumption-based greenhouse gas emission inventories.
The study was conducted by researchers from institutions including the University of Groningen, Chongqing University, Fudan University, the University of Hong Kong, Cardiff University, the University of Birmingham and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.
Publication details
Yanxian Li, et al. Youth lead current dietary emissions while seniors increasingly drive total emission growth, Nature Food (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s43016-026-01383-4
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Citation: Global analysis reveals age as overlooked driver of food-related climate emissions (2026, July 22) retrieved 22 July 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2026-07-global-analysis-reveals-age-overlooked.html
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