Animal agriculture is an ecological disaster, exacerbates poverty and injustices

“There is also broad consensus that animal agriculture is an ecological disaster. Although estimates vary, there is no question that animal foods represent an inefficient use of plant protein in that animals have to consume many pounds of grain or forage to produce one pound of meat. For example, according to Cornell University Professors David Pimentel and Marcia Pimentel,[2] it takes 13 kilograms (a kilogram is 2.2 pounds) of grain and 30 kilograms of forage to produce one kilogram of beef; 21 kilograms of grain and 30 kilograms of forage to produce a kilogram of lamb; 5.9 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of pork; 3.8 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of turkey; 2.3 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of chicken, and 11 kilograms of grain to produce one kilogram of eggs. Livestock in the United States consume 7 times as much grain as is consumed by the entire U.S. human population and the grains fed to livestock could feed 840 million humans who had a plant-based diet.

The Pimentel study states that one kilogram of animal protein requires about 100 times more water than does 1 kilogram of grain protein. According to another study,[3] one kilogram of beef requires 15,415 liters of water (a gallon is 3.78 liters); sheep meat (lamb and mutton) 10,412 liters; pork 5,988 liters; and chicken 4,325 liters. A kilogram of apples requires 822 liters of water; bananas 790 liters; cabbage 237 liters; tomatoes 214 liters; potatoes 287 liters; and rice 2,497 liters. Most estimates vary between 1000 to 2000 gallons of water to produce a gallon of milk.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations states that animal agriculture contributes more greenhouse gases, which are linked directly to global warming, to the atmosphere than does burning fossil fuel for transportation.[4] According to Worldwatch Institute, animal agriculture produces an estimated 51% of the worldwide total of greenhouse gas emissions from human activity. Moreover, a significant amount of fossil energy is required to yield an animal-based product. The average fossil energy input for all animal protein sources is 25 kcal of fossil energy input to 1 kcal of animal protein produced, which is more than 11 times greater than for grain protein production.[5]”

Quote from: http://www.eatlikeyoucarebook.com/

And we don’t have any nutritional need for animal foods, so the suffering, violence, and death that animals go through in the production of meat, milk and eggs is completely unnecessary. Go vegan to opt out of animal exploitation and to opt out of injustices towards humans.

2. David Pimentel and Marcia Pimentel,
“Sustainability of meat-based and plant-based diets and the
environment,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
2003; 78 (suppl): 660S-3S, available at
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/78/3/660S.full.pdf.
[3]. Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Global Food:
Waste Not, Want Not (2013), at 12, available at:
http://www.imeche.org/docs/defaultsource/
reports/Global_Food_Report.pdf?sfvrsn=0.
[4]. FAO Newsroom,
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000448/.
[5]. See Pimentel study.
More to learn here: http://bloganders.blogspot.no/search?q=human+rights&max-results=20&by-date=true

Vegan reply to ' If you reduce meat production and increase plant production you are creating a whole new set of problems.'

According to Cornell University Professors David Pimental and Marcia Pimental, it takes 13 kilograms (2.2 pounds) of grain and 30 kilograms of forage to produce one kilogram of beef; 21 kilograms of grain and 30 kilograms of forage to produce kilogram of lamb; 5.9 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of pork; 3.8 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of turkey; 2.3 kilograms of grain to produce a kilogram of chicken, and 11 kilograms of grain to produce one kilogram of eggs. Livestock in the United States consume 7 times as much grain as is consumed by the entire U.S. human population and that the grains fed to livestock could feed 840 million humans who had a plant-based diet. One kilogram of animal protein requires about 100 times more water than does 1 kilogram of grain protein. It takes between 20 and 100 gallons of water to produce most vegetables or fruit. The Pimental study says it takes more than 2000,000 liters of water to produce one kilogram of pasture-raised beef. The estimates of water required for a pound of beef go from 2,000 to 12,000 gallons; it takes about 110 gallons of water to produce a pound of wheat. Most estimates vary between 1000 to 2000 gallons of water to produce a gallon of milk.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations states that animal agriculture contributes more greenhouse gases, which are linked directly to global warming, to the atmosphere than does burning fossil fuel for transportation. According to Worldwatch Institute, animal agriculture produces an estimated 51% of the worldwide total of greenhouse gas emissions from human activity. Moreover, a significant amount of fossil energy is required to yield an animal-based product. The average fossil energy input for all animal protein sources is 25 kcal of fossil energy input to 1 kcal of animal protein produced, which is more than 11 times greater than for grain
protein production.
Quote: https://www.facebook.com/abolitionistapproach/posts/596843230335435

I highly recommend you to study this: http://www.eatlikeyoucarebook.com/
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"
In fact, "we find that doing a complete radical shift away from grain-fed animals, and stop producing biofuels, that you can increase calorie availability enough for 4 billion people," Emily Cassidy, a researcher at the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota, told NBC News.
She and colleagues examined 41 major crops grown around the world, which account for more than 90 percent of global crop production, to find out how much food is being produced and how it is being used.

They found that 36 percent of the calories produced are used for animal feed. Of those, 12 percent wend their way to the human diet as meat and animal products. Another 4 percent of human-edible calories are used to produce biofuels.

Growing all those crops for direct human consumption instead increases available food calories by up to 70 percent, Cassidy and colleagues report in the Aug. 1 issue of Environmental Research Letters.
When those additional calories are translated to the number of people who can be fed a 2,700-calorie-a-day diet, the team's math shows an additional 4 billion people can be fed with food grown on existing farmland.
"
Quote: http://www.nbcnews.com/science/feed-4-billion-more-skip-meat-milk-eggs-study-says-6C10848930



This was a reply to:
 If you reduce meat production and increase plant production you are creating a whole new set of problems.

Cause of the injustices in Bangladesh, e.g. in garment factories, and the solution to end poverty and starvation

The cause of injustices, poverty, suffering of animals and people and starvation in our world and how animal agriculture isn't sustainable:

Matt Vercoe wrote about a catastrophy in a garment factory in Bangladesh:
http://www.npr.org/2013/04/27/179251838/double-take-toons-deadly-work-places?utm_source=NPR&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=20130427

Thanks for sharing!

It inspired me to write this, together with what I have read in the World Peace Diet, the writing of Dr. Richard Oppenlander and other sources of inspiration:

Matt wrote: ":( The price they pay so we can have cheap clothes...... why is their life worth less than a few corporate dollars? We perpetuate this by insisting on buying the cheapest possible commodities so we may have new clothes, a new tv, a new phone, a new car.... "

Furthermore we are exploiting the workers and the animals by chemicals that are destructive for the environment. These are used in the process of manufacturing garments.

This is routine in our society. This is a disease in our society. We are making choices without either knowing about the exploitation involved or ignoring the exploitation involved. We are making the choices without reflecting on the individuals hurt in the manufacture process.

Cheap clothes are bought without thinking of the misery it causes the workers in poor countries with miserable working conditions in the factories, and the humans and other animals suffering by the environmental destruction.

Meat, milk, eggs and other animal products are consumed without thinking of the animals hurt, used, exploited and killed in the process; and the poverty and starvation that it causes in the world [2]

And why do people in Bangladesh and other countries have to work in the first place in a factory with miserable working conditions, instead of growing the fruits, vegetables and legumes and being completely self-sustained?

Bangladesh has a land area of 147,570 (km )² = 147 570 * 10^6 m^2 . This is 36 892 500 acres. Their population is 158,570,535

“Only 400-480 pounds of meat can be produced by one acre of land [Of an animal that has the right to live, and shouldn’t be killed for someone’s taste], compared to 20,000 pounds of plant foods that could be grown on the same slot.” [1]

Thus, one acre of land can feed about 10 adult humans per year.

70% of the 36 892 500 acres is arable, i.e it can feed about 36 892 500 acres * 0,7 * 10 adult humans = about 252 million adults.

Thus, if the land was used in a sustainable, effective and just way in Bangladesh, and the land was divided evenly, everyone could grow their own organic, vegan food (by growing using vegan permaculture) in good working and living conditions. No one would have to work in a factory destroying the workers and destroying the environment, and thus destroying for humans and other animals.

But we are culturally indoctrinated by our culture, daily learning to disconnect and exclude animals from our circle of compassion; and this also spreads to excluding or not caring enough/losing our capacity to be able to understand or think of what our choices are causing other individuals, like the individuals in poor countries. Now instead the population of “livestock” increases; and thus the food that poor people need for their survival are in a greater extend going to animals with the tragic misfortune to be bred and raised to become someone’s dinner.  [2b]

The solution is to start caring, and stop making choices that result in the exploitation of others. To always making vegan choices that are not hurting, exploiting, excluding or inflicting violence on any other being.

Here are some resources that will help you with this: Some informative websites [4,5,6].

Foot notes:

 1. http://www.belsandia.com/comfortably-unaware.html

2. http://www.drmcdougall.com/video/expert_testimonies_oppenlander.htm

2b. http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/resources/en/publications/sector_briefs/lsb_BGD.pdf

3. World Peace Diet by Will Tuttle

4.www.vegankit.com ; 5. http://www.facebook.com/abolitionistapproach; 6: http://bloganders.blogspot.com
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Comments:

Wendy Wendy I buy mostly from Goodwill, but sometimes I can't find what I need there. I understand what you're saying. I just think sometimes people forget that there are poor folks in the US, too. Unemployed (hello!), earning little above minimum wage, etc. And when you go into a store that sells fair trade clothes, or at least this is true for me, I can't afford them. I know the whole system is screwed. But not all of us who, from time to time, buy cheap clothes do it because we're unaware, you know? I'm not saying that I don't recognize still that I'm privileged. The fact that I live in the US and have access to things like computers and grad school and stuff I am very very grateful for. But maybe it's not always quite so black and white.

18 hours ago · Like

Anders Branderud Wendy Wendy,
Thanks for your comment!
I am aware of this. We can only do our best!
It is great to buy at Goodwill instead of new things when possible as you are doing. Also Ebay may be an option, they sell alot of used clothes.
I didn't mean to paint a black-and-white picture that is claiming that everyone who is buying cheap new clothes is not aware of what their choices are causing/or that everyone have can afford fair trade-clothing.
I just wanted to paint a general picture of the mentality that our culture has created. Of course there are many people, like you, who are fighting against this mentality.

Have a wonderful day!!

Vegan, reduce and avoid causing suffering and death to all sentient beings

I became a vegan last autumn and is doing my utmost not to cause any sentient being suffering and pain. I hope you are doing the same. If everyone does the same then we can create a plant-based food system that doesn't hurt or kill any other beings, a vegan plant-based food system without manure, pesticides and killing of bugs and other animals; and we can live in a society free of animal products.

We should treat others as we want to be treated ourselves
All animals are conscious and they do value life as much as we do.

If we don't want to be killed, we shouldn't kill other animals (regardless of species - humans, dogs, cats, cows, chicken, etc.).
If we don't want someone else to steal our family, we shouldn't steal their family.
If we want to find our purpose in this world, we shouldn't steal others purpose.
If we don't want to be exploited and abused, we shouldn't abuse anyone else.
If we don't want to become enslaved, we shouldn't keep anyone else as a slave.
If we don't want to hurt any animals, we must become vegans (i.e. stop eating, wearing and using animal products, and in other ways do actions that are hurting and killing animals).
If we love animals, we don't kill animals. We don't kill and eat anyone that we love. If we love animals, we must support their want to not be oppressed, including not to be killed.
I recommend this lecture: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLgGnP0pWzM

All kind of animal products, including eggs and milk, are causing humans and other animals terrible suffering, oppression, starvation and death. Being vegan is the only way not to participate in the oppression.