Australia could have beef with China's revised dietary guidelines By Chelsea Harvey An updated set of dietary guidelines released by the Chinese government and applauded by environmentalists could affect Australian exports. 
The recommendations could reduce China's meat consumption, or at least slow its growth, which could help save land and water resources and put a dent in global greenhouse gas emissions.
Australian beef sales to China surged sixfold in three years to a record $917million in 2015, data from Meat & Livestock Australia shows. The volume of beef shipped to China rose more than four times over the same period while the price received for the exports is up 37 per cent in the past 12 months.
China's annual meat consumption is about 62 kilograms per capita; the guidelines would limit it to about 27 kilograms.
Yet according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation, meat and dairy consumption in China is expected to keep increasing over the next few decades.
Environmentalists argue if the recommended reductions were to occur, it could be a major win for the environment.
Agriculture is one of the primary contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, and the meat industry is one of the biggest culprits. Earlier this year, researchers from Oxford University published a paper suggesting that a more plant- based diet worldwide could cut food-related greenhouse gas emissions by anywhere from 29 to 70 per cent.
Dr Marco Springmann, lead author of that paper, noted such changes in China could have major health and environmental impacts. According to his research, reducing China's average red meat consumption by 100 grams a day in the year 2050 could help avert 2.2 million deaths and cut food-related emissions by more than a billion metric tons.
"Any changes in dietary recommendations that move in that direction would represent a step in the right direction," he said.
A forthcoming report from environmental organisation WildAid estimates that adherence to the dietary guidelines could cut greenhouse gas emissions by an amount equal to 1.5 per cent of total global emissions.
Washington Post