Why are we using up our natural resources feeding livestock?

A 2006 United Nations, Food and Agricultural Organization report has brought to light many of the problems associated with the production of meat. Increased wealth has lead to changes in food preferences, which has resulted in increased consumption of meat. During the past 40 years global per capita meat production has increased more than 60% (Tilman et al 2002). Livestock products now provide one third of humanity’s protein intake and global production of meat is projected to more than double from 1999 to 2050 with our growing population (UN, 2006). The report states that the livestock sector emerges as one of the most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, on a local and global scale. The meat industry contributes heavily to problems of land degradation, climate change, air pollution, water shortage and pollution and loss of biodiversity.

5 reasons why you should become a vegetarian!         

• The livestock sector is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2 equivalent (this is a higher share than transport). The largest share of this comes from land use change, especially deforestation (UN 2006).
• Overgrazing by cattle for meat degrades land and reduces soil productivity. Livestock production accounts for 70% of all agricultural land and 30% of the land surface of the planet. This includes the vast amount of land required to grow feedcrops for cattle which has resulted in huge amounts of deforestation (UN 2006).
• The livestock sector accounts for over 8% of human water use, mostly for the irrigation of feedcrops (UN 2006).
• The production of 1kg of meat requires between 3 and 10kg of grain, which requires vast amounts of land and many natural resources for growth (Tillman et al 2002). Therefore for the same input of resources you get a much smaller output compared to eating the grain directly, making the system less efficient.
• Meat eating adds a trophic level to the food chain and energy is lost with each trophic level, meaning that meat eating is less energy efficient than vegetarianism. Therefore meat eating increases depletion of earths natural resources (Tillman et al 2002).

Therefore increased meat consumption is not helping in the quest to feed the world’s growing population within the world’s environmental limits.