Huge amounts of extra land needed for RFK Jr’s meat-heavy diet guidelines

Robert F Kennedy Jr’s meat-heavy diet plan would have significant climate impacts. Composite: Chicago Tribune, Getty Images

The Trump administration’s new dietary guidelines urging Americans to eat far more meat and dairy products will, if followed, come at a major cost to the planet via huge swathes of habitat razed for farmland and millions of tons of extra planet-heating emissions.

A new inverted food pyramid recently released by Donald Trump’s health department emphasizes pictures of steak, poultry, ground beef and whole milk, alongside fruits and vegetables, as the most important foods to eat.