New research from Oxford University finds that taxing red meat and processed meat could prevent over 200,000 deaths a year and offset billions in health care costs associated with meat consumption.
The study published on Nov. 6 in the journal PLOS One outlines the known health risks of red and processed meat consumption, including increased mortality from coronary heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. Eating red and processed meat has also been declared to be “probably carcinogenic” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization.
The study estimates that by 2020, red and processed meat consumption will lead to health care costs that could reach $285 billion and be associated with 2.4 million deaths globally. The scientists recommended using new taxes to increase the cost of red meat by more than 20% and the price of processed meats by 100% in high-income countries.
(via Meat Tax Would Save Millions of Lives and Billions of Dollars, Say Oxford Scientists - ProCon.org)
Source: procon.org
