UN study throws out vegan health claims

Meat, eggs and dairy provide crucial sources of much-needed nutrients that should be enjoyed as part of a healthy balanced diet, according to a report from United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

The study, which has been described as the ‘most comprehensive yet’ and is based on evidence from more than 500 scientific papers and some 250 policy documents, also revealed that essential proteins and vitamins found in meat and dairy could not be replicated by plant-based alternatives.

It read: “Meat, eggs and milk provide a range of important macro-nutrients such as protein, fats and carbohydrates and micro-nutrients that are difficult to obtain from plant based foods in the required quality and quantity.”

The latest report supports a growing number of scientists who have questioned 2020’s Global Burden of Disease study that said eating red meat was responsible for more than 890,000 deaths worldwide.

The study, published in medical journal The Lancet, has been quoted by countless organisations across the UK as a reason for embarking on an anti-meat path. It was also referenced by so-called ‘Food Tsar’ Henry Dimbleby when drawing up the Government’s National Food Strategy.

Jane Thynne | Farmers Guardian