Producing meat has caused numerous issues including human health, climate change, constraints on natural resources, and animal welfare. All these contribute to various economic issues with each affecting the economy in a different way. With the plant-based meat initiative gaining more attraction, an increase in this product's demand could be a major solution to the negative consequences the current meat industry has on the environment, economy, and people. In this article we'll be discussing the relationship between meat production and these three aspects.
ENVIRONMENT
Producing beef requires a lot of natural resources which adds to the possible depletion of these resources in the future.
These are the benefits of producing plant-based meat rather than regular meat.
99% less water
As already discussed in our post, "A Revolution is on it's Way", meat production requires watering the crops that the animals eat, providing over 2 billions cows globally with drinking water each year. Washing and maintaining millions of processing, slaughter factory farms, and transport trucks also uses water. [2] Comparing this to just growing plants, the amount of water used is 99% less. [3]
93% less land
Raising cattle takes up a lot of land, more than we think it does. According to The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, approximately five billion hectares (12 billion acres) of land is used for agricultural, and 68% of that land is used for livestock. [4] Imagine the amount of land that could’ve been used to plant more trees, but instead we see a shocking amount of forests being cleared to make space for cattle. Cattle ranching is now the biggest cause of deforestation in the Amazon, with nearly 80% of the deforested areas in Brazil are being used for pasture. [5] Growing the plants required to create plant-based meat takes 93% less space than cattle. [3]
To put things in perspective, plant-based meat using "93% less land" means a 41-square-foot plot of land can produce just one beef burger for every 15 Beyond Burgers. [6]
90% fewer GHGE (greenhouse gas emissions)
Livestock (majority being cattle) are responsible for 18% of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, more than cars, planes and all other forms of transport put together. [7]
The gasses and manure emitted from livestock, especially from cattle, make up more than one third of methane emissions. [8] This gas traps heat and warms the world 20 times faster than carbon dioxide, making it a large player in global warming. On average, 70 to 120 kgs of methane are produced per cow annually. [9]
Contrast to meat production, plant-based meat uses 90% fewer greenhouse gas emissions. [3]
46% less energy
The University of Michigan conducted this entire study, in which they concluded that plant-based meat uses 46% less energy. [3] Meat production also utilizes non-efficient energy that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. On average, a regular hamburger requires more than 4,000 Btus of fossil-fuel energy to get to the dinner table. [10]
Making plant-based meat shows that the natural resources that would be used to produce regular meat are conserved and used more efficiently.
SOCIAL (PEOPLE AND ANIMALS)
Healthier Diet
People who eat a plant-based diet have rare chances of being obese. Studies show that a plant-based diet is healthier as it reduces the top health risks in western countries such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, obesity, and diabetes. An 11-year old study shows that a vegetarian diet could cut one's risk of heart disease by as much as 32 percent. [11]
Reducing Rate of Slaughtered Animals
About 56 billion land animals are slaughtered for our consumption annually. [12] A study in 2014 showed that 39 million cattle are killed each year. [13] We are producing and consuming cattle at an unhealthy rate. By continuing this cycle, this number will only increase, which means more cattle are needed. By reducing the demand of cattle by switching the type of meat used in our burgers and minimizing the amount of meat consumed can put an end to this disastrous cycle.
This endless slaughter cycle brings a few ethical problems to light. Now that there is a meat-less option that is animal friendly, sustainable, and much less harmful to the environment, is it ethical to continue eating meat at the unhealthy rate we're consuming it now?
But how does these issues cause problems to our local, national, or global economy?
The Canadian beef industry is the second largest in the world. [14]
Their cash receipts total up to $9.4 billion each year since 2014-2018, supplying $18 billion annually to Canada's GDP. [14] On average, per Canadian, 18 kg of beef is purchased per year, indicating a very high demand for beef. According to the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, Canada produces 1.3 million tonnes of beef annually. [14]
The economic impact these social and environmental consequences have will be discussed in depth in the next post!
Work Cited:
1 Heller, Martin C., and Gregory A. Keoleian. "Beyond Burger LCA Report V3.1 FINAL." History Studies International Journal of History 10, no. 7 (2018): 27. doi:10.9737/hist.2018.658.
2 "World Cattle Inventory: Ranking of Countries (FAO)." Drovers. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.drovers.com/article/world-cattle-inventory-ranking-countries-fao.
3 "Our Impact." Beyond Meat - The Future of Protein™. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.beyondmeat.com/about/our-impact/.
4 "Livestock's Long Shadow." Home . Accessed June 14, 2019. http://www.fao.org/3/a0701e/a0701e00.htm.
5 "How Cattle Ranches Are Chewing up the Amazon Rainforest." Greenpeace UK. July 27, 2017. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/how-cattle-ranching-chewing-amazon-rainforest-20090129/.
6 Raphael, Rina. "Meatless Burgers vs. Beef: How Beyond Meat's Environmental Impact Stacks up." Fast Company. September 26, 2018. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.fastcompany.com/90241836/meatless-burgers-vs-beef-how-beyond-meats-environmental-impact-stacks-up.
7 Herrero, Mario. "To Reduce Greenhouse Gases from Cows and Sheep, We Need to Look at the Big Picture." The Conversation. February 24, 2019. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://theconversation.com/to-reduce-greenhouse-gases-from-cows-and-sheep-we-need-to-look-at-the-big-picture-56509.
8 Lean, Geoffrey. "Cow 'emissions' More Damaging to Planet than CO2 from Cars." The Independent. February 14, 2012. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/cow-emissions-more-damaging-to-planet-than-co2-from-cars-427843.html.
9 Pradhan, Rujuta. "Cow Farts and Global Warming: Do Cows Contribute More to Global Warming?" Science ABC. December 17, 2018. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.scienceabc.com/nature/cows-contribute-global-warming-cars.html.
10 "Can Artificial Meat Save The World?" Popular Science. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://www.popsci.com/article/science/can-artificial-meat-save-world/.
11 "Here Are the Top 10 Health Concerns Linked to Meat." Mercy For Animals. January 19, 2017. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://mercyforanimals.org/here-are-the-top-10-health-concerns-linked.
12 "How Many Animals Are Killed for Food Every Day?" Reporting on Animals, Animal Rights, and Human Choices -. March 07, 2019. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://sentientmedia.org/how-many-animals-are-killed-for-food-every-day/.
13 "Factory Farms." A Well-Fed World. Accessed June 14, 2019. https://awfw.org/factory-farms/.
14 "Industry Stats." Industry Stats » The Canadian Cattlemen's Association. Accessed June 14, 2019. http://www.cattle.ca/cca-resources/industry-stats/.
