The Environmental Cost of Animal Source Foods

8/3/2018

This post is a bit off my typical path of this blog, but I just couldn't pass it up. This paper offers a great overview of how animal production (vertebrates mostly) impacts the environment. The authors recognize the limitations of the study, but point out that many of the typical industries in livestock, poultry, and aquaculture have a major impact on the environment in terms of:

Energy use
Greenhouse gas production
Eutrophication
Acidification
Other impacts (e.g., water use, toxicity via pesticide use)

The study was conducted by reviewing 148 previous studies assessing animal source food production. The article can be found at:

Hilborn, R., J. Banobi, S. J. Hall, T. Pucylowski, and T. E. Walsworth. 2018. The environmental cost of animal source foods. Front Ecol Environ 16: 329-335.

Based on what is known about insect farming, while not perfect, insects definitely have less of an impact on the environment when produced at a large scale- great news for the BSF!

Author

Jeffery K. Tomberlin, PhD, Appreciating larger view of livestock industry
Director, EVO Conversion Systems
Twitter: @FliesFacility

2 Comments

Michael Place link

8/4/2018 08:07:01 am

I love seeing this post...it's such an important topic. A study published last month amplifies the message with similar findings.

https://www.livekindly.co/meat-greater-impact-environment/

Culturally, this discussion needs a serious reboot. Less finger pointing and more focus on common denominators and systems thinking. Brian Kateman's 'Reducetarian' movement is tapping into this with a big tent message that strikes the right tone.

Meanwhile, leadership seems...lacking. Livestock emissions data were not included in the US's Paris Agreement submission, and in 2018 Congress threw the baby out with the bathwater exempting livestock operations from CERCLA reporting.

https://ehsdailyadvisor.blr.com/2018/05/cercla-reporting-exemption-farms-approved-congress/

In other words, we don't seem to be willing to even keep score on the effect of our dietary choices and underlying food system externalities.

BSF's potential should never conjure cornucopian notions of maintaining this shortsighted status quo.

But BSF is incredibly well positioned to become a broad new pillar in building a bridge from a broken food system to one that evolves with a total lifecycle understanding of what TEEB calls the "true cost of food".

It may seem like a contradiction for BSF proponents to advocate for reducetarianism, but the vastness of the waste and output markets offer astounding opportunities for many years of growth. In that context, the only risk of not advocating for broader changes including (for some) a reduction in consumption of animal source foods, is to the earth's systems we rely on.

So whether we plan on a green smoothie, a tofu salad, an insect smorgasbord or a juicy hamburger waiting for us in 2050, we need to stop biting the hand that feeds us.

Thanks JT/EVO for highlighting the issue!

8/4/2018 08:07:14 pm

This is enormous news. Even if the full award doesn't stand, it sends shock waves through Big Ag.

https://stocksnewsfeed.com/smithfield-ordered-to-pay-in-hog-case/

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