Is The Food You’re Feeding Your Dog Hurting The Planet?
How big of an industry is cattle farming?
When we’re talking about raising cows for meat, statistics generally include adult cattle and young cows raised for veal. In terms of human consumption, last year in the United States nearly 57 pounds per capita of beef and veal were consumed, according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). Out of the 9 billion animals killed for food every year in the United States alone, 30.6 million are cattle. However, the USDA reports that the total number of cattle and calves in the United States, as of January 1, 2018, totaled 94.4 million. It’s more difficult to find out exactly what happens to each cow, but the USDA does break down the numbers for cows that have had calves, beef cows, and milk cows. For beef cows specifically, the numbers were 31.7 million, up 2% from the previous year. The USDA also proclaims that, “The United States is the world's largest beef producer and second largest beef exporter, but significant imports of lower-valued processing beef also make it the world's largest beef importer.” So, while millions of cows are being killed every year in the US for food, there are even more around the world who likely are being processed for pet food.What are the main environmental impacts of cattle farming?
It’s safe to say that the cattle farming industry is massive. With all those statistics about how many cows are raised for meat, comes the fact that each one of those cows is a living animal that eats and produces waste throughout its short life.
- Leaked during the production and transportation of coal, oil and natural gas
- From the flatulence of ruminants like cattle
Category_Dog Blog
Environment
