One of the most common arguments a vegan hears is that they kill more plants than vegetarians or meat eaters or you are a plant killer. But is it really true? Where are the numbers? Well, there are numbers available but they might not look like what a meat eater or vegetarian would have thought.
- Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 91% of Amazon Rainforest destruction.
- On average, more than 65,000 square feet of rainforest is cleared every second for crop production which is then fed to animals in the livestock industry.
- Every year, 13,000 crore square meters of forest disappear due to human activity and the leading cause is animal agriculture.
- Every year, 13,000 crore square meters of forest disappear due to human activity and the leading cause is animal agriculture.
- Livestock is responsible for 65% of Nitrous Oxide emissions. Nitrous Oxide is 296 times more destructive than Carbon Dioxide.
- The United Nations along with other agencies reported that not only did livestock play a major role in global warming. It is also the leading cause of resource consumption and environmental degradation destroying the planet today.
- Meat, eggs, milk, and other dairy products are incredibly water-intensive products because the animals are using very water-intensive grains and what the animal eats essentially is considered part of the virtual water footprint of that product.
- The meat and dairy industry uses a third of the earth’s fresh water.
- A third of the planet is desertified, with livestock as the leading driver.
Meat and the Environment
The consumption of meat is not only unethical but also unsustainable.
It takes 100 liters of water to produce 1 kg of potatoes, 4000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of rice, whereas, it takes 13,000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of beef, not to mention the oil used in the production process and transport.
India is the largest producer of dairy and dairy products in the world. India is also the 2nd largest exporter of beef in the world.
As a consequence of this, India risks being the country that suffers the most from the lack of water in the coming century. Massive irrigation has fed the growing population and in the last 50 years, 2.1 crore wells have been dug. In many parts of the country, the drill has to sink ever deeper to reach water.
India is a stunning example of how high dependency on animal-based foods can lead to water depletion and scarcity.
Milk and Its Negative Impact on the Environment
Cows’ Milk is some of the most water-wasting food on the planet. It is estimated that producing 1 liter of cow’s milk requires 628.2 liters of water. As shown below, a huge amount of land is needed and it results in the most greenhouse gas emissions when compared to plant-based milks.
Bovines (cows and buffaloes) produce methane as a byproduct of breaking down grass and other things that they feed on. Cows worldwide produce 57000 crore liters of methane per day. We have about 150 crore cows in animal agriculture. Methane is about 22 times more potent greenhouse gas than Carbon Dioxide!
But don’t soybeans cause deforestation?
Many people blame increasing soybean production for deforestation and thus often blame vegans for such issues. But reality is quite different from what has been told to us. Soybean production is increasing day by day not because vegans consume soy but because it is consumed by livestock which are used in milk, meat consumed by vegetarians, and meat eaters. About 95% of soybeans that are produced are fed to the livestock.
Animal Agriculture and World Hunger
Animal agriculture is also the leading cause of world hunger. Nearly 100 crore people are going hungry. 100 crore people have no access to safe drinking water. 5000 people a day die because of dirty drinking water. In reality, 20% of the world’s population uses 80% of Earth’s resources. 82% of the world’s starving children live in countries where food is fed to animals in livestock systems that are then killed and eaten by more well-off individuals, making animal agriculture also a human rights issue.
Species Extinction and Animal Agriculture
Deforestation and climate change, has caused many extinctions and continue to threat more and more species. Every one mammal in 4, one bird in 8, one amphibian in 3 are threatened with extinction. Species are dying out at a rate 1000 times faster than the natural state. Three quarters of fishing grounds are exhausted, depleted or in dangerous decline. Scientists have warned that if we keep taking the fish out of the ocean at the current rate, we will have a ‘fishless ocean’ by the year 2050.
Rising temperatures and animal agriculture
Eating animals and animal based products not only warms our stomachs but the planet too to a point that it is the biggest cause of global warming. The average temperature of the last 15 years has been the highest ever recorded. The ice cap is 40% thinner than 40 years ago. These rising temperatures not only affect us, but all the living organisms in the world. These unusual rise in temperature is also responsible for species extinction.