NYC not tracking individual food purchases under climate plan

"(Mayor Eric Adams) wants you to stop eating meat and he is going to track you to make sure of it," says Natali Morris in a May 23, 2023 YouTube video with more than 100,000 views.

Morris co-hosts a web show called "Redacted" with her husband, former "Fox & Friends" personality Clayton Morris. The series has previously spread misinformation.

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Screenshot of a YouTube video taken May 30, 2023

Similar claims circulated on TikTok, Twitter and Facebook.

Many posts link to a May 16, 2023 article from The Defender with the headline: "New York to Track Residents' Food Purchases and Place 'Caps on Meat' Served by Public Institutions." The website is operated by the anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense, which AFP has fact-checked multiple times for spreading misinformation.

Other posts link to an article with a similar headline. But the notion that New York City is tracking individual households is inaccurate -- AFP has previously debunked similar claims.

New York City is conducting a greenhouse gas inventory (archived here) that will include data on consumption-based emissions. But those numbers will be aggregated and anonymized, according to Ben Gould, president and co-founder of EcoDataLab, a consulting firm that has partnered with the city for the project.

"Our calculations do not include tracking or collecting any individual's food (or other) purchases," Gould said in a May 30 email. "Our data is based on the US Consumer Expenditures Survey, which is a nationwide survey of households that self-report their expenditures on goods and services over the course of one week."

He added that the data "are aggregated and anonymized by the Bureau of Labor Statistics."

Gould said New York City's February 2023 report (archived here) analyzed national data from 2019 and made adjustments "based upon differences between the average New York City household and the average US household."

Meat limits

Some posts misleadingly claim New York City's climate initiatives limit meat consumption for residents.

In February 2022, Adams, a Democrat, issued an executive order (archived here) calling for a revision of food standards and purchasing policies at schools and other municipal facilities. The health department then produced guidelines (archived here) for city agencies and contractors.

That document calls for more fruits, vegetables and whole grains. It also recommends limits on sodium, sugar and fat.

For protein, the guidelines say processed meats should be phased out by 2025 and that beef should be served no more than twice a week at most facilities. The document does not include any limits on poultry or seafood.

The guidelines also call for limiting meals in which cheese is the "primary protein" to once per week.

The food standards (archived here) apply to city-operated schools, child care and senior centers, public hospitals and correctional facilities. They have no effect on private operators or households.