Where's the beef? A systems model for taming a wicked environmental problem (2017-2025)

This project aims to build systems models of local environmental impacts of beef production coupled with models of global beef trade to analyse production and policy scenarios. Demand for beef is increasing dramatically, particular in Asia. Beef is the food commodity with the largest ecological footprint, and increased production will have globally significant impacts on land and water resources, biodiversity, and climate. The scale of these impacts depends on where and how cattle production occurs. Outcomes of this research include a framework for projecting regional and global ecological impacts of domestic cattle production policies, allowing informed decisions that consider and benefit environmental and socio-economic values.