Hungry? Americans consume 1 billion pounds of food daily. Producing it consumes huge quantities of fuel, water, fertilizers, pesticides and land — mostly for livestock feed.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest offers a sampling of inputs required by concentrated animal feeding operations:
- 1,000 gallons of irrigation water to produce a quarter-pound of animal protein. Half of all irrigation water is used to raise livestock.
- Seven pounds of corn to add each pound of weight to feedlot cattle, and approximately one pound of fertilizer to produce three pounds of beef. The equivalent amount of fruits and vegetables uses a small fraction of inputs required for animal-derived food.
- Fertilizer washing down the Mississippi River has created a New Jersey-sized dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico, suffocating fish and crustaceans.
- Hormones used to quickly fatten animals, and antibiotics dosed to prevent illness arising from unnatural diets and cramped quarters, affect human consumers and life in waterways.
- Tight confinement speeds the spread of disease. In a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, people who ate eggs from caged hens were 250 percent more likely to be poisoned by salmonella. Citizen, veterinary and family farm groups are now advocating Proposition 2, a California ballot measure which would phase out confinement of hens, pigs and calves in cages so small they can’t turn, stand or lie down.
- Livestock and factory farm manure lagoons release the greenhouse gas equivalent of nearly 33 million motor vehicles.
- As developing nations like China prosper, their citizens are emulating American dietary habits. Earth Policy Institute president and global agriculture researcher Lester Brown has noted that the animal-laden American diet requires production of four times the grain per person as the average Indian diet. If the whole world ate as much meat as Westerners, two-thirds more farmland would be needed. Add increased demand for water and other resources, and increased pollution, for a recipe for disaster.
To protect health and the environment, the nonprofit CSPI has developed an “Eating Green” diet packed with vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, seeds, whole grains and omega-3-rich foods like flax oil.
While nutrition- and environment-based food and farm policies would improve diets, CSPI’s executive director, Michael Jacobson, writes in his book “Six Arguments for a Greener Diet,” writes “Consumer demand is the most important factor in changing what people eat, what food marketers offer, and what farmers grow.”
So seek foods from farmers and businesses committed to environmentally respectful and humane practices. Beef eaters, buy pasture-raised instead of factory-farmed and grain-fed. Poultry eaters, look for cage-free. Fish fans, choose wild-caught instead of farmed, and avoid endangered, overfished species. And everyone can make more plant-based, animal-free meals.
When eco-conscious producers succeed, others will follow.
Surf the Web
To learn more about the other options mentioned here, please visit:
- eatinggreen.org
- factoryfarm.org
- wfad.org
- ”Six Arguments for a Greener Diet” by Michael F. Jacobson, Ph.D., and the staff of the Center for Science in the Public Interest
Robin Tierney is a freelancer who writes about health and environment issues. Have an idea or suggestion? She can be reached at [email protected].
