Meat tax

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A meat tax is a tax on meat and other animal products to help pay for the health and environmental costs of farming animals for food. Livestock contributes to climate change, nitrogen problems, and loss of biodiversity. The tax can also be called a slaughter tax or carcass tax, and it could apply to imports of frozen carcasses as part of how it’s collected.

Researchers and groups have suggested or supported such a tax. A 2015 report from Chatham House and Glasgow University urged a tax on red meat. An Oxford study by Adam Briggs found that a carbon tax on high-emission foods like meat could benefit both the environment and public health in the UK. Other scientists have proposed using a tax or emissions trading to raise meat prices. Oxford’s Marco Springmann has also proposed a tax on meat and dairy.

Health and humanitarian concerns also drive support. PETA argues for a meat tax because of health impacts, climate change, and animal welfare. Denmark’s Council on Ethics has called for a meat tax, and the FAIRR Initiative in 2017 said meat tax was becoming more likely. Sweden’s Environmental Protection Agency sees it as a tool to reduce meat consumption.

Some opponents say such a tax would be regressive or authoritarian, or that the health and economic claims aren’t clear, or that it doesn’t fully account for long-term costs.

In June 2024, Denmark announced plans to introduce a tax on livestock carbon dioxide emissions from 2030, aiming to set an example for other countries.