A critical review on the impact of slaughterhouses and meat production industries on global warming and climate change

In recent decades, climate change has emerged as a critical concern as global warming is expected to reach the mark of 1.5 degree Celsius. This temperature rise is resulting into severe environmental challenges which has now become a major concern for the sustainability researchers. The increasing demand for meat over the past few decades has accelerated meat production and its impact on the global warming. Deforestation, large-scale water consumption, air and water pollution, and the emission of greenhouse gases are among the most challenging consequences associated with the meat industry. Hence, in the present study, a critical review of the environmental footprints of meat production has been done to assess the severity of its implications. This study covers complete supply chain that includes feed production, livestock rearing, transportation, processing, and distribution. Each of these stages was found to contribute a considerable amount of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), methane (CH 4 ), and nitrous oxide (N 2 O), which are responsible for global warming and climate change. The study also focuses on the impact of meat production on land and water resources, energy utilization, and biodiversity loss, which collectively pose long-term risks to ecological stability. Furthermore, potential mitigation measures and policy frameworks have been discussed to encourage sustainable practices and to minimize the overall environmental burden of the meat production sector.