As livestock carbon neutrality emerges as a global issue, Hanwoo’s carbon-neutral competitiveness was found to be 29% higher than that of imported beef. The study also found that for every 10 percentage-point increase in the Hanwoo self-sufficiency rate, global beef greenhouse gas emissions decrease by 345,000 tons.

Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Animal Molecular Genetics and Breeding Project Group (Director Professor Lee Hak-gyo, Department of Animal Biotechnology) published the results of a comparative analysis of the carbon-neutral competitiveness of domestic and imported beef in the Journal of the Korean Society of Animal Genetics and Breeding. The research team analyzed the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)’s country-level beef carbon footprint (emission intensity) during the livestock production stage and over 60 years of Korea’s beef production data to identify Hanwoo’s carbon-neutral competitiveness and its causes. Hanwoo’s carbon-neutral competitiveness was found to be higher than that of OECD countries such as France, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

Over the past 60 years, Korea’s Hanwoo carcass weight has increased by 164% (an average annual increase of 1.8%). The carbon footprint decreased by 83% (an average annual decrease of 3.1%). These results are rare globally. This can be interpreted as the result of improvements in Hanwoo, which account for 85% of Korea’s cattle slaughter numbers (Hanwoo, beef cattle, and dairy cattle). Even after about 40 years of Hanwoo breeding improvement, carcass weight increased by 23% (an average annual increase of 1.3%) during the 2002–2020 period, indicating high sustainability in reducing beef carbon footprints through Hanwoo improvement.

In 2017, domestic beef production amounted to 239,000 tons, while a total of 344,000 tons of beef were imported from seven countries including the United States, Australia, and the Netherlands. Based on distribution volumes, the average carbon footprints of domestic and imported beef were 13.9 and 17.9 kg CO2‑equivalent per kg, respectively, meaning imported beef’s carbon footprint was 29% higher. The total greenhouse gas emissions for beef consumption in Korea, combining domestic and imported beef, amounted to approximately 14 million tons. If imported beef were replaced by domestic beef, every 10% increase in self-sufficiency would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 345,000 tons.

Importing and consuming beef with higher carbon footprints than domestic beef is likely to result in a net increase in global greenhouse gas emissions. If low-carbon trait Hanwoo breeding reduces carbon footprints while maintaining appropriate herd sizes, replacing imported beef could contribute to greenhouse gas reductions both in Korea and globally.

For beef, the difference in carbon footprints between countries can exceed 14-fold compared with manufactured goods. Demand surges in developing countries have led to sharp increases in cattle-related carbon emissions. Thus, efforts by advanced countries alone are limited in reducing global beef emissions. This study suggests that Korea’s rapid achievement of more than an 80% reduction in emissions could enable export of a low-carbon breeding technology system to both developed and developing countries for global emission reduction. If carbon reductions can be converted into carbon credits and the revenue from those credits reinvested, this could support sustainable global livestock carbon reduction.

In Europe, legislation has already passed to impose a carbon border tax starting in 2026. This reflects a global trend and underscores the urgent need to reduce livestock carbon emissions. Based on this research, the team developed the world’s first genomics-based platform to verify individual cattle carbon footprint reductions. The platform enables sustainable, precise verification and traceability of individual reductions. Using this platform, the team established a verification system for reduced-carbon beef and launched a low-carbon Hanwoo brand called Rokakau. The existing Hanwoo grading system is maintained. Field pilot projects are currently underway with Hanwoo producers and in processing and distribution markets.

Professor Lee Hak-gyo, who led the research, said, “If Hanwoo breeding technologies that reflect low-carbon traits are applied more systematically, they will not only help achieve carbon-neutral goals in Korea’s livestock sector but also greatly contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by establishing verified livestock carbon reduction systems in developing countries.”