A public statement signed by more than 1,000 scientists in support of meat production and consumption has numerous links to the livestock industry[.]

The declaration and associated studies are viewed as “propaganda” by leading environmental scientists. Prof Matthew Hayek of New York University in the US said: “The scientific consensus is that we need rapid meat reduction in the regions that can afford that choice.”

Studies in the highest-ranking scientific journals have concluded that cutting meat and dairy consumption in rich countries is the single best way to reduce a person’s impact on the environment and that the climate crisis cannot be beaten without such cuts. People already eat more meat than health guidelines recommend in most developed nations.

The statement has been used to target top EU officials against environmental and health policies and has been endorsed by the EU agriculture commissioner [...] The EU was pursuing policies to reduce meat consumption on environmental and health grounds, but some of these have recently been dropped.