Environmental Impact

Ditching dairy and going plant-based can reduce your…
Carbon Emission by
70%
Land Use by
75%
Water Use by
50%
The dairy industry is a major contributor to global warming. Their practices are a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions and water pollution, in addition to taxing our natural lands and accelerating deforestation. By eliminating dairy and choosing a plant-based lifestyle, you can help to fight the climate crisis and restore fragile ecosystems.

Environmental Impact of the Dairy Industry

The dairy industry is a major contributor to global warming. Their practices are a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions and water pollution, in addition to taxing our natural lands and accelerating deforestation. By eliminating dairy and choosing a plant-based lifestyle, you can help to fight the climate crisis and restore fragile ecosystems.

  1. A dairy farm with 2,500 cows produces 73 million pounds of waste per year, equivalent to the waste from a city of 411,000 people (about the size of Sacramento, California). (1, 8) Waste from dairy farms is stored in massive lagoons that are prone to leakage, contaminating the surrounding soil and groundwater.
  2. Butter ranks third on the National Resource Defense Council’s chart of 10 common climate-damaging foods. It requires 21 gallons of milk to make 1 pound of butter (using 21,000 gallons of water in the process).
  3. 647 gallons of water is required to produce 1 gallon of cows’ milk. (3)
  1. Animal agriculture makes up 10% of the global water footprint, 18% of which is from dairy cattle. (4, 5)
  2. 100 calories of cattle feed only produce 25-30 calories of milk, making it an extremely wasteful and inefficient beverage. (6)
  3. Manure lagoons contain two major air pollutants—ammonia and hydrogen sulfide—that irritate the respiratory system and can lead to health complications. (7) California’s prominent dairy region—the San Joaquin Valley—has the highest particulate (dust from dried manure) pollution in the United States. (8)
  1. The production of milk makes up 38% of global greenhouse gases produced by enteric emissions (aka the worldwide sum of cow burps and farts). (9)
  2. Each year, a single cow belches about 220 154-264 pounds of methane. Methane is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in our atmosphere over 20 years. (10) With 270 million dairy cows worldwide all producing methane, the dairy industry produces between 41.5 and 71.3 billion pounds of methane each year just from cows’ digestion. (11)
  3. Animal waste and agriculture accounts for 74% of all U.S. nitrous oxide emissions. This particular gas is the most damaging because it has 273 times the warming power of carbon dioxide. It also stays in the Earth’s atmosphere for 109 years on average, significantly longer than other short-lived climate pollutants like methane (which is around for 12 years). (13)
  1. How Much Manure Does Livestock Produce? (n.d.). Utah State University Extension. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://extension.usu.edu/agwastemanagement/manure-management/how-much-manure
  2. 10 Common Climate-Damaging Foods. (n.d.). NRDC. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/10-common-climate-damaging-foods-infographic.pdf
  3. Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987-992
  4. Water use in livestock production systems and supply chains: Guidelines for assessment. (2019). Food and Agriculture Organization. https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/fd15000e-d78f-42db-a050-bee91fce8d84/content
  5. Heinke, J., Lannerstad, M., Gerten, D., Havlík, P., Herrero, M., Notenbaert, A. M. O., Hoff, H., & Müller, C. (2020). Water Use in Global Livestock Production—Opportunities and Constraints for Increasing Water Productivity. Water Resources Research, 56(12), e2019WR026995. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019WR026995
  6. Basic Nutrition for Dairy Cattle. (n.d.).  Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.  Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://www.vet.cornell.edu/animal-health-diagnostic-center/programs/nyschap/modules-documents/basic-nutrition-dairy-cattle
  7. Food & Water Watch. “Air Pollution From Oregon’s Large Dairies: Fact Sheet.” FWW, March 2017. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://foodandwaterwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/fs_1702_oregoncafo-web_2.pdf
  8. American Lung Association. “Most Polluted Cities.” American Lung Association, 2025. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://www.lung.org/our-initiatives/healthy-air/sota/city-rankings/most-polluted-cities.html
  9. Upfield plant-based spreads and margarine vs. Dairy butter: Life Cycle Assessment Technical Summary. (2020, March). Quantis. https://www.florafoodgroup.com/-/media/project/upfield/corporate/upfield%20corporate/supplier%20centre/pdfs/upfield_technicalsummary_2020-03-09_quantis.pdf
  10. US EPA, R. 01. (2021, March 8). Agriculture and Aquaculture: Food for Thought (Massachusetts) [Speeches, Testimony and Transcripts]. https://www.epa.gov/snep/agriculture-and-aquaculture-food-thought
  11. Dairy. (n.d.). World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://www.worldwildlife.org/industries/dairy
  12. US EPA, O. (2016, January 12). Understanding Global Warming Potentials [Overviews and Factsheets]. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/understanding-global-warming-potentials
  13. US EPA, O. (2015, December 16). Climate Change Indicators: Greenhouse Gases [Reports and Assessments]. https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/greenhouse-gases

How a Plant-Based Diet Saves the Planet

These healthy, plant-based foods are more far more sustainable and climate-friendly than dairy products. They’re loaded with essential macro and micro nutrients to help nourish your body so you can perform at your best while being better for the planet.

  1. Going vegetarian will reduce your carbon emissions by 35%, land use by 65%, while going vegan can reduce your carbon emissions and land use by more than 70%. (1)
  2. 647 gallons of water is required to produce 1 gallon of cow’s milk. (2) One person can save the water equivalent of 43 ten-minute showers for every gallon of milk they don’t drink. (3)
  3. By 2050, emissions from animals and the production of their feed could make up one-third of U.S. greenhouse gases. (4)
  1. The United Nations’ emissions goals for fighting climate change will be impossible if we don’t drastically reduce dairy consumption. (5)
  2. Deforestation for pasture and feed crops, transportation, and dairy processing contributes to CO₂ emissions and destroys rainforests and habitat. (6)
  3. The world’s top five largest meat and dairy companies produce more greenhouse gases annually than ExxonMobil, Shell, or BP. (7)
  1. Aleksandrowicz L, Green R, Joy EJM, Smith P, Haines A. The Impacts of Dietary Change on Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Land Use, Water Use, and Health: A Systematic Review. PLOS ONE, 2016; 11(11): e0165797
  2. Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987-992
  3. Saving water in your home. Portland.gov. (2025, February 7). https://www.portland.gov/water/water-efficiency-programs/save-water-home
  4. EWG’s Quick Tips for Reducing your Diet’s Climate Footprint. (2022). Environmental Working Group. https://www.ewg.org/sites/default/files/2022-04/EWG_TipSheet_Meat-Climate_C02.pdf
  5. Clark, Michael A., Nina GG Domingo, Kimberly Colgan, Sumil K. Thakrar, David Tilman, John Lynch, Inês L. Azevedo, and Jason D. Hill. “Global food system emissions could preclude achieving the 1.5° and 2° C climate change targets.” Science 370, no. 6517(2020): 705-708
  6. Our global food system is the primary driver of biodiversity loss. UN Environment Programme website. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/our-global-food-system-primary-driver-biodiversity-loss. Updated 2021. Accessed Apr 4, 2025
  7. GRAIN. “Emissions impossible: How big meat and dairy are heating up the planet.” GRAIN and Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, June 28, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2019, from https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5976-emissions-impossible-how-big-meat-and-dairy-are-heating-up-the-planet

Sustainable Nondairy Foods

  1. Oat milk use significantly less water and are more climate-friendly than cows’ milk. (1) 1 liter of cow’s milk emits 3½ times more carbon dioxide and requires more than 20 times the water of producing oat milk.
  2. Pulses (beans, dry peas, lentils, and chickpeas) are a more sustainable source of protein than cow’s milk. (2) Pulses have up to 2 times the amount of protein per serving (depending on the variety) and emit 90% less greenhouse gases per 100g of protein compared to cow’s milk. (3)
  3. Bananas are a more sustainable of potassium than cow’s milk. (4) 1 banana contains 48 mg more potassium than 1 glass of cow’s milk while using 60% less water to produce.

  1. Kale is a more sustainable source of calcium than cow’s milk. (5) 1 cup of kale has the same amount of absorbable calcium as 1 cup of cow’s milk, but only 33 calories. An 8 oz glass of cow’s milk ranges from 83 to 148 calories (from skim to whole-fat varieties).

  2. Soy milk is more sustainable than cow’s milk. Compared to cow’s milk, soy milk production uses only 2.8% the amount of water, 7.8% the amount of land, produces 69% less greenhouse gas emissions, and requires 77% less total energy. (4)(6)
  1. Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987-992
  2. Ranganathan, J., Vennard, D., Waite, R., Dumas, P., Lipinski, B., & Searchinger, T. (2011). Shifting Diets for a Sustainable Food Future
  3. Greenhouse gas emissions per 100 grams of protein. (n.d.). Our World in Data. Retrieved April 29, 2025, from https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/ghg-per-protein-poore
  4. Hoekstra, Arjen Y. “The water footprint of food”. Water for Food
  5. Amy Joy Lanou. Should dairy be recommended as part of a healthy vegetarian diet? Counterpoint. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009; 89(5):1638S–1642S
  6. Carlsson Kanyama, A., Hedin, B., & Katzeff, C. (2021). Differences in Environmental Impact between Plant-Based Alternatives to Dairy and Dairy Products: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability, 13(22), 12599. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212599

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Pro Athletes are Fighting Climate Change with Diet Change

Professional athletes and Olympic champions from all over the world are speaking up to encourage you to adopt a plant-based diet to combat climate change and ensure a healthy, sustainable future for the next generation.

Why Ditch Dairy

Need reasons? Here are a few more.
Health & Performance
a herd of cows standing next to each other in a barn
Cows & the Dairy Industry
Food Justice

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