Cowspiracy Facts
________ gallons of water are required to produce 1 gallon of milk.
1,000 gallons Hoekstra, Arjen Y. "The water footprint of food". Water for Food. Mekonnen, Mesfin M. & Hoekstra, Arjen Y. "A Global Assessment of the Water Footprint of Farm Animal Products". Ecosystems (2012) 15: 401-415
_____ acres of rainforest are cleared every second.
1-2 acres "Measuring the Daily Destruction of the World's Rainforests". Scientific American (New) Butler, Rhett. "10 Rainforest Facts for 2017". Mongabay.com. January, 2017 (New) "Avoiding Unsustainable Rainforest Wood". Rainforest Relief Reid, Walter V. & Miller, Kenton R. "Keeping Options Alive: The Scientific Basis for Conserving Biodiveristy". World Resources Institute. October 1989 "Tropical Deforestation". National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Facts
1.5 acres can produce ____ pounds of plant-based food. 1.5 acres can produce ____ pounds of beef.
1.5 acres can produce 37,000 pounds of plant-based food. 1.5 acres can produce 375 pounds of beef. Oppenlander, Richard A. Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/food-choice-and-sustainability-richard-a-oppenlander/1117327379?ean=9781626524354 "Direct Seeded Vegetable Crop Chart". Johnny's Selected Seeds Schwab, Denise, et al. "Grass-fed and Organic Beef: Production Costs and Breakeven Market Prices, 2008-2009". Iowa State University 2012
Livestock or livestock feed occupies _____ of the earth's ice-free land.
1/3 "Livestock a major threat to environment. Remedies urgently needed". FAO Newsroom. 29 November 2006 Walsh, Bryan. "The Triple Whopper Environmental Impact of Global Meat Production". Time. Dec. 16, 2013 (New)
How much of the planet is desertified, with livestock as the leading driver?
1/3 of the planet "UN launches International Year of Deserts and Desertification". UN News Centre. 1 January 2006 Oppenlander, Richard A. Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print. Hogan, C Michael. "Overgrazing". The Encyclopedia of Earth. May 1, 2010 "Desertification, Drought Affect One Third of Planet, World's Poorest People, Second Committee Told as It Continues Debate on Sustainable Development". United Nations Sixty-seventh General Assembly: Second Committee. 8 November 2012 Oppenlander, Richard. "Saving the World With Livestock? The Allan Savory Approach Examined". Free from Harm. August 6, 2013
In the U.S. livestock produce _______ lbs of waste per second:
116,000 lbs of waste per second: -Dairy Cows, 120 lbs. of waste per day x 9.32 million dairy cows -Cows, 63 lbs. of waste per day x 83.68 million cows -Calves, 30 lbs. of waste per day x 34.3 million calves -Pigs, 14 lbs. of waste per day x 74 million pigs -Sheep and Goats, 5 lbs. of waste per day x 7.84 million sheep and goats -Turkeys, .87 lbs. of waster per day x 77 million turkeys -Broiler Chickens, .50 lbs. of waste per day x 1.74 billion broiler chickens -Laying Hens, .25 lbs. of waster per day x 350.7 million laying hens *pigs are raised twice per year, (a total of 148.3 million per year) so on any given day in the United States there are about 74 million pigs. *turkeys are raised three times per year (a total of 233 million per year) so on any given day in the United States there are 77 million turkeys. *broiler chickens are raised 5 times per year, (a total of 8.69 billion per year) so any given day there are1.74 billion broiler chickens. Dairy Cows produce (120 lbs. x 9.32 m.) = 1.1184 billion lbs. Cows produce (63 lbs. x 83.68 m.) = 5.27184 billion lbs. Calves produce (30 lbs. x 34.3 m.) = 1.029 billion lbs. Pigs produce (14 lbs. x 74.0 m.) = 1.036 billion lbs. Sheep and Goats produce (5 lbs. x 7.84 m.) = 39.2 million lbs. Turkeys produce (.87 lbs. x 77.0 m.) = 66.99 million lbs. Broiler Chickens produce (.5 x 1.74 b.) = 870 million lbs. Laying Hens produce (.25 x 350.7 m.) = 87.675 million lbs. *Total manure produced in one day is 9.519105 billion lbs. *Total manure produced in one year is 3.475 trillion lbs. *This is the equivalent of over 6.611 million lbs. per minute. (This does not include any animal raised outside of USDA Jurisdiction, backyards or fish raised for aquaculture)
Transportation exhaust is responsible for what percentage of all greenhouse gas emissions.
13% Greenhouse gas emissions from this sector primarily involve fossil fuels burned for road, rail, air, and marine transportation. "Livestock's Long Shadow: environmental issues and options". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome 2006 Environmental Protection Agency. "Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data".
_____ times more animal waste than human waste is produced in the US - ____________ tons from the meat industry annually. ________ tons of animal waste is produced per person in the US.
130 times more animal waste than human waste is produced in the US - 1.4 billion tons from the meat industry annually. 5 tons of animal waste is produced per person in the US. [xii] "Animal Agriculture: Waste Management Practices". United States General Accounting Office. July 1999
_____ million rainforest acres cleared for animal agriculture.
136 million rainforest acres Butler, Rhett. "Amazon Destruction". Mongabay.com. January 2017 Butler, Rhett A. "Brazilian beef giant announces moratorium on rainforest beef". Mongabay. August 2009
Cows produce __________ gallons of methane per day.
150 billion gallons Ross, Phillip. "Cow Farts Have 'Larger Greenhouse Gas Impact' Than Previously Thought; Methane Pushes Climate Change". International Business Times. 26 November, 2013 250-500 liters per cow per day, x 1.5 billion cows globally is 99 - 198.1 billion gallons. Rough average of 150 billion gallons CH4 globally per day. Miller, Scot M, et al. "Anthropegnic emissions of methane in the United States". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Vol. 110. No. 50. 18 October 2013 (new)
___ x more protein on any given area of land with plants, rather than cows.
15x more Soybeans can be produced at 52. 5 bushels per acre x 60 lbs. per bushel = 3,150 dry soybeans per acre Soybeans protein content (dry) is 163.44 grams per pound The protein content per acre of soybeans is 163.44 g x 3,150 lb. = 514,836 g per acre Beef can be produced at 205 pounds per acre Beef protein content (raw) is 95.34 grams per pound The protein content per acre of beef is 95.34 g x 205 lb. = 19,544.7 g per acre
Animal agriculture is responsible for what percentage of greenhouse gas emissions?
18 percent, more than the combined exhaust from all transportation. "Livestock's Long Shadow: environmental issues and options". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome 2006
_______ gallons of water are needed to produce 1 pound of beef.
2,500 gallons (NOTE. The amount of water used to produce 1lb. of beef vary greatly from 442 - 8000 gallons. We choose to use in the film the widely cited conservative number of 2500 gallons per pound of US beef from Dr. George Borgstrom, Chairman of Food Science and Human Nutrition Dept of College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Michigan State University, "Impacts on Demand for and Quality of land and Water." ) Robbins, John. "2,500 gallons all wet?" Earth Save: Healthy People Healthy Planet. Pimentel, David, et al. "Water Resources: Agricultural and Environmental Issues". BioScience (2004) 54 (10): 909-918. (New) "Water Content of Things: Data Table 19". The World's Water 2008-2009 Beckett, J. L, Oltjen, J. W "Estimation of the Water Requirement for Beef Production in the United States". Journal of Animal Science. 1993. 71:818-826 "Water". Environmental Working Group. "Water footprint of crop and animal products: a comparison". Water Footprint Network. (New) Oppenlander, Richard A. Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN: Langdon Street, 2013. Print
_____ - _____ acres of land are used per cow.
2-5 acres McBride, William D., Mathews Jr., Kenneth. "The Diverse Structure and Organization of U.S. Beef Cow-Calf Farms". USDA: Economic Research Service. Number 73. March 2011 Oppenlander, Richard A. Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN: Langdon Street, 2013. Print.
As many as __________ animals are pulled from the ocean each year.
2.7 trillion Mood, A & Brooke, P. "Estimating the Number of Fish Caught in Global Fishing Each Year". July 2010 "Fish count estimates". Fishcount.org.uk
Animal Agriculture is responsible for _______ % of all fresh water consumption in the world today.
20%-33% Mekonnen, Mesfin M. & Hoekstra, Arjen Y. "A Global Assessment of the Water Footprint of Farm Animal Products". Ecosystems (2012) 15: 401-415 Gerbens-Leenes, P.W. et al. "The water footprint of poultry, pork and beef: A comparitive study in different countries and production systems". Water Resources and Industry. Vol. 1-2, March-June 2013, Pages 25-36 Herrero, Mario, et al. "Biomass use, production, feed efficiencies, and greenhouse gas emissions from global livestock systems". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. vol. 110 no. 52 Oppenlander DDS, Richard. "Freshwater Abuse and Loss. Where Is It All Going?" Forks over Knives. May 20,2013
We could see fishless oceans by_____
2048. Worm, Boris, et al. "Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services". Science. Vol 314. 3 November 2006 Roach, John. "Seafood May Be Gone by 2048, Study Says". National Geographic News. November 2, 2006 Montaigne, Fen. "Still Waters: The Global Fish Crisis". National Geographic
The average American consumes ____ pounds of meat per year.
209 pounds of meat per year. DeBruicker, Julie. "How much do we eat, anyway?" John Hopkins Center for a Liveable Future. March 2011 "Kings of the Carnivores. Vegetarians should look away". The Economist. April 2012 Barnard, M.D, Neal. "Do We Eat Too Much Meat?" The Huffington Post Blog. January 2011 Gould, Skye & Friedman, Lauren F. "The countries where people eat the most meat". Business Insider. September 2015
World Population grows ______ people everyday.
228,000+ "Current World Population". Worldometers (New) "Visualizations of population growth". The Population Institute
Methane is how many times more potent than CO2?
25-100 times more destructive than CO2 on a 20 year time frame. Shindell, Drew T, et al. "Improved Attribution of Climate Forcing to Emissions". Science. 326, 716 (2009) Vaidyanathan, Sayathri. "How Bad of a Greenhouse Gas is Methane? The global warming potential of the gaseous fossil fuel may be consistently underestimated". Scientific American. December 22, 2015.
_____ million rainforest acres (10.8m hectares) have been cleared for palm oil production.
26 million rainforest acres "Indonesia: Palm Oil Expansion Unaffected by Forest Moratorium". USDA: Foreign Agriculture Service. June 2013
Nitrous oxide - is a greenhouse gas which has how many more times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide? And how long does it stay in the atmosphere?
296 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide, and stays in the atmosphere for 150 years. "Livestock' Long Shadow: environmental issues and options". FAO. Rome. 2006 "Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States". U.S. Energy Information Administration. March 31, 2011
Animal agriculture water consumption ranges from _____ gallons annually.
34-76 trillion "Summary of Estimated Water Use in the United States in 2005". United States Geological Service Pimentel, David, et al. "Water Resources: Agricultural and Environmental Issues". BioScience. (2004) 54 (10): 909-918
As many as ______% (___________ pounds) of fish caught globally every year are discarded.
40% (63 billion pounds) Keledjian, Amanda, et al. "Wasted Catch: Unsolved Problems in U.S. Fisheries". Oceana. March 2014 Goldenberg, Suzanne. "America's nine most wasteful fisheries named". The Guardian. 20 March 2014
Livestock covers ______ % of the earth's total land.
45% Thornton, Phillip, et al. "Livestock and climate change". Livestock xchange. International Livestock Research Institute. November 2011
For every 1 pound of fish caught, up to ______ pounds of unintended marine species are caught and discarded as by-kill.
5 pounds "Discard and bycatch in Shrimp trawl fisheries". FAO: Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
_____ % of water consumed in the US is by private homes. _____ % of water consumed in the US is for animal agriculture.
5% of water consumed in the US is by private homes. 55% of water consumed in the US is for animal agriculture. [xv] Jacobson, Michael F. "Six Arguments For a Greener Diet: How a More Plant-based Diet Could Save Your Health and the Environment. Chapter 4: More and Cleaner Water". Washington, DC: Center for Science in the Public Interest, 2006.
A person who follows a vegan diet produces the equivalent of ____ % less carbon dioxide, uses 1/11th oil, 1/13th water, and 1/18th land compared to a meat-lover for their food. [xx]
50% "The carbon foodprint of five diets compared". Shrink That Footprint Scarborough, Peter, et al. "Dietary greenhouse-gas emissions of meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans in the UK". Climactic Change. July 2014. Volume 125. Issue 2. pp. 179-192 Pimentel, David & Pimental, Marcia. "Sustainability of meat-based and plant-based diets and the environment". The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. September 2003. vol 78. no 3 660S-663S "Facts on Animal Farming and the Environment". One Green Planet. "Vegetarianism and the Environment. Why going meatless is important". Vegetarian Guide "Our Future Our Food. Making a Difference With Every Bite: The Power of the Fork!". Earth Save International Ranganathan, Janet & Waite, Richard. "Sustainable Diets: What You Need to Know in 12 Charts". World Resources Institute. April 2016 (New)
Livestock operations on land have created more than _____ _______ ______ deadzones around the world in our oceans.
500 nitrogen flooded deadzones "NOAA-, EPA-supported scientists find average but large Gulf dead zone". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. August 4, 2014 Zielinski, Sarah. "Ocean Dead Zones Are Getting Worse Globally Due to Climate Change". Smithsonian.com. November 10, 2014 (New)
Growing feed crops for livestock consumes _____% of water in the US.
56%
Livestock is responsible for how much of all human-related emissions of nitrous oxide?
65% "Livestock' Long Shadow: environmental issues and options". FAO. Rome. 2006 "Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States". U.S. Energy Information Administration. March 31, 2011
Scientists estimate as many as _______ whales, dolphins and seals are killed every year by fishing vessels.
650,000 Keledjian, Amanda, et al. "Wasted Catch: Unsolved Problems in U.S. Fisheries". Oceana. March 2014 Goldenberg, Suzanne. "America's nine most wasteful fisheries named". The Guardian. 20 March 2014
Every minute, __________ pounds of excrement are produced by animals raised for food in the US.
7 million pounds This doesn't include the animals raised outside of USDA jurisdiction or in backyards, or the billions of fish raised in aquaculture settings in the US. [v] "Animal Manure Management". USDA: Natural Resources Conservation Service. RCA Issue Bief #7. December 1995 "Agricultural Waste Management Field Handbook". USDA: Natural Resources Conservation Service. Part 651 "Agricultural Waste Characteristics". Agricultural Waste Management Field Handbook. USDA. Chapter 4
70 billion farmed animals are reared annually worldwide. More than ___ million animals are killed for food every hour.
70 billion farmed animals are reared annually worldwide. More than 6 million animals are killed for food every hour. "Factory Farms". A Well Fed World "Strategic Plan 2013-2017: For Kinder, Fairer Farming Worldwide". Compassion in World Farming "Animals Slaughtered". Animals Deserve Absolute Protection Today and Tomorrow Oppenlander, Richard A.Food Choices and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/food-choice-and-sustainability-richard-a-oppenlander/1117327379?ean=9781626524354
The US lower 48 states represents 1.9 billion acres. Of that 1.9 billion acres: _____ million acres of private land are used for livestock grazing (forest grazing, pasture grazing, and crop grazing), _____ million acres for feed crops, _____ million acres of public land are used for grazing livestock.
778 million acres of private land are used for livestock grazing (forest grazing, pasture grazing, and crop grazing), 345 million acres for feed crops, 230 million acres of public land are used for grazing livestock. Nickerson, Cynthia, et al. "Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2007". USDA: Economic Research Service. Number 89. December 2011 "Rearing cattle produces more greenhouse gases than driving cars, UN report warns". UN News Centre. 29 November 2006
Emissions for agriculture projected to increase _____ by 2050.
80% Tilman, David & Clark, Michael. "Global diets link environmental sustainability and human health". Nature. Vol. 515. 27 November 2014
____ % of antibiotic sold in the US are for livestock.
80% of antibiotic sold in the US are for livestock. Loglisci, Ralph. "New FDA Number's Reveal Food Animals Consume Lion's Share of Antibiotics". Center for a livable future. December 2010 "2009 Summary Report on Antimicrobials Sold or Distributed for Use in Food-Producing Animals". FDA: Departent of Health and Human Services. September, 2014 Zuraw, Lydia. "2015 in Review: Animal Antibiotics". Food Safety News. December 2015 (New) Flanders, Timothy F, RN, CNP, PHD, et al. "A Review of Antibiotic Use in Food Animals: Perspective, Policy, and Potential". Public Health Reports 2012 Jan-Feb; 127 (1): 4-22 (New)
Agriculture is responsible for ______ of US water consumption.
80-90% "How Important is Irrigation to U.S. Agriculture?" USDA: Economic Research Service. 12 October, 2016
____ % of starving children live in countries where food is fed to animals, and the animals are eaten by western countries.
82% Oppenlander, Dr. Richard. "The World Hunger-Food Choice Connection: A Summary". Comfortably Unaware Blog. August 2012 "Improving Child Nutrition: The achievable imperative for global progress". UNICEF. April 2013 "Livestock production index". The World Bank "Global livestock production systems". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome 2011
Methane's global warming potential compared to CO2
86 times that of CO2 on a 20 year time frame. Shindell, Drew T, et al. "Improved Attribution of Climate Forcing to Emissions". Science. 326, 716 (2009)
____ - ____ tons of fish are pulled from our oceans each year.
90-100 million tons "World Review of Fisheries and Aquaculture: Part 1". United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
Animal agriculture is responsible for up to ___ % of Amazon destruction.
91% Margulis, Sergio. "Causes of Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon". World Bank Working Paper No. 22. 2003 Tabuchi, Hiroko, Rigny, Claire & White, Jeremy. "Amazon Deforestation, Once Tamed, Comes Roaring Back". New York Times. February 2017(New) Bellantonio, Marisa, et al. "The Ultimate Mystery Meat: Exposing the Secrets Behind Burger King and Global Meat Production". Mighty Earth (New) Oppenlander, Richard A. Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. . Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print.
A farm with ________ dairy cows produces the same amount of waste as a city of _______ people.
A farm with 2,500 dairy cows produces the same amount of waste as a city of 411,000 people. [vi] "Risk Assessment Evaluation for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations".Environmental Protection Agency. 2004
Each day, a person who eats a vegan diet saves ____ gallons of water, ____ pounds of grain, ____ sq ft of forested land, ____ lbs CO2 equivalent, and one animal's life. [xiv]
Each day, a person who eats a vegan diet saves 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq ft of forested land, 20 lbs CO2 equivalent, and one animal's life. [xiv] Scarborough, Peter, et al. "Dietary greenhouse gas emissions of meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans in the UK". Climactic Change July 2014., Volume 125, Issue 2, pp 179-192 "Meat Eater's Guide to Climate Change and Health". Environmental Working Group. 2011 Ranganathan, Janet & Waite, Richard. "Sustainable Diets: What You Need to Know in 12 Charts". World Resources Institute. April 2016 (New) "How much have you saved?" The Vegan Calculator (New) Ogden, Lillie. "The Environmental Impact of a Meat-Based Diet". Vegetarian Times. (New) Oppenlander, Richard A. Food choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work. Minneapolis, MN : Langdon Street, 2013. Print. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/food-choice-and-sustainability-richard-a-oppenlander/1117327379?ean=9781626524354
How much of the contiguous US is devoted to animal agriculture?
Nearly half Glaser, Christine, et al. "Costs and Consequences: The Real Price of Livestock Grazing on America's Public Lands". For the Center for Biological Diversity. January 2015
Ten thousand years ago, ___% of biomass (i.e. zoomass) was wild animals. Today, humans and the animals that we raise as food make up ___% of the zoomass.
Ten thousand years ago, 99% of biomass (i.e. zoomass) was wild animals. Today, humans and the animals that we raise as food make up 98% of the zoomass. Ede, Sharon. "The Bomb is Still Ticking...". Post growth: From bigger towards better. November 2010 Smil, Vaclav. "Harvesting the Biosphere: The Human Impact". Population and Development Review 37 (4): 613-636 (December 2011)
Throughout the world, humans drink ___ billion gallons of water and eat ___ billion pounds of food each day.
Throughout the world, humans drink 5.2 billion gallons of water and eat 21 billion pounds of food each day. There are 7.5011 billion people on earth Based on rough averages of water at .5-1 gallon (.75 gallons) x 7.5011 billion = 5.626 billion gallons of water and 7,605 metric tons of food produced per minute = 24.143 billion pounds of food per day.
Up to ____ plant, animal and insect species are lost every day due to rainforest destruction.
Up to 137 "The Disappearing Rainforests". Save the Amazon.org "What is Deforestation?" Kids.Mongabay.com Message from Mr. Ahmed Djoghlaf. Secretariat of the Convention of Biological Diversity. United Nations Economic Programme Vidal, John. "Protect nature for world economic security, warns UN biodiversity chief". The Guardian. August 2010 (New)
Land required to feed 1 person for 1 year: Vegan: ___th acre Vegetarian: ___x as much as a vegan Meat Eater: ___x as much as a vegan [xvii]
Vegan: 1/6th acre Vegetarian: 3x as much as a vegan Meat Eater: 18x as much as a vegan [xvii] Robbins, John. Diet for a New America, StillPoint Publishing, 1987, p. 352 "Our Food Our Future. Making a Difference With Every Bite: The Power of the Fork!" EarthSave International Eishel, Gordon, et al. "Land, irrigation water, greenhouse gas, reactive nitrogen burdens of meat, eggs and dairy production in the United States". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Vol. 111 No. 33 June 2014
We are currently growing enough food to feed _____ people.
We are currently growing enough food to feed 10 billion people. Holt-Giménez, Eric. "We Already Grow Enough Food for 10 Billion People...and Still Can't End Hunger". Common Dreams: Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community. May 2012 "U.S. could feed 800 million people with grain that livestock eat, Cornell ecologist advises animal scientists". Cornell Chronicle. August, 1997 Cassidy, Emily S, et al. "Redefining agricultural yields: form tonnes to people nourished per acre". Environmental Research Letters 8 (2013) 034015 (8pp). August 2013
World population in 1812: 1 billion; 1912: ____ billion; 2012: ___ billion.
World population in 1812: 1 billion; 1912: 1.5 billion; 2012: 7 billion. "Human Numbers Through Time". Nova "Current World Population". Worldometers
Worldwide, at least ____% of grain is fed to livestock.
Worldwide, at least 50% of grain is fed to livestock. "Executive Summary: Feed Supply". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (New) "Meat and Animal Feed". Global Agriculture. Agriculture at a Crossroads. Findings and recommendations for future farming. (New) Shah, Anup. "Beef: Diverting resources to environmentally destructive uses". Global Issues. August 2010 "Did you know? U.S. and Wisconsin soybean facts". Wisconsin Soybean Marketing Board
Worldwide, cows drink ____ billion gallons of water and eat ____ billion pounds of food each day.
Worldwide, cows drink 45 billion gallons of water and eat 135 billion pounds of food each day. Based on rough averages of 30 gallons of water & 100 lbs. of food per day x of cows 1.468 billion cows
Livestock and their byproducts account for how much CO2?
at least 32,000 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, or 51% of all worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. Goodland, R Anhang, J. "Livestock and Climate Change: What if the key actors in climate change were pigs, chickens and cows?" Goodland, Robert & Anhang, Jeff. "Livestock and Climate Change: What if the key actors in climate change are...cows, pigs and chickens?". WorldWatch. November/December 2009 Hickman, Martin. "Study claims meat creates half of all greenhouse gases". Independent. November 2009 Hyner, Christopher. "A Leading Cause of Everything: One Industry That Is Destroying Our Planet and Our Ability to Thrive on It". Georgetown Environmental Law Review. October 23, 2015. (New)
The leading causes of rainforest destruction are ____ and ____ .
livestock and feedcrops. Butler, Rhett. "Cattle Ranching's Impact on the Rainforest". Mongabay.com. July 2012 (New) Veiga, J.B., et al. "Cattle Ranching in the Amazon Rainforest". UN: Food and Agriculture Oragnization (New) "Soy Agriculture in the Amazon Basin". Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Sudies: Global Forest Atlas (New)
US Methane emissions from livestock and _______ are nearly equal.
natural gas "Overview of Greenhouse Gases". United States Environmental Protection Agency. "Key facts and findings. By the numbers: GHG emissions by livestock". FAO. (New) "Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks 1990-2015". United States Environmental Protection Agency (new)
Animal agriculture is the leading cause of:
species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution, and habitat destruction. [xix] [iv] Animal agriculture contributes to species extinction in many ways. In addition to the monumental habitat destruction caused by clearing forests and converting land to grow feed crops and for animal grazing, predators and "competition" species are frequently targeted and hunted because of a perceived threat to livestock profits. The widespread use of pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers used in the production of feed crops often interferes with the reproductive systems of animals and poison waterways. The overexploitation of wild species through commercial fishing, bushmeat trade as well as animal agriculture's impact on climate change, all contribute to global depletion of species and resources. [XIX] "Biodiversity and Food Choice: A Clarification". comfortablyunaware: Global Depletion and Food Choice Responsibility. June 9, 2012 "Freshwater Depletion: Realities of Choice". comfortablyunaware: Global Depletion and Food Choice Responsibility. November 25, 2014 "What is a dead zone?" National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration "What Causes Ocean 'Dead Zones'?" Scientific American "Nutrient Pollution: The Problem". Environmental Protection Agency "Livestock's Long Shadow". Food and Agriculture Organization of The United Nations. 2006 Hogan, C Michael. "Causes of Extinction". The Encyclopedia of Earth. June 13, 2014 "The Habitable Planet. Unit 9: Biodiversity Decline// Section 7: Habitat Loss: Causes and Consequences". Annenberg Learner "Impact of habitat loss on species". WWF Global "How Eating Meat Hurts Wildlife and the Planet". Take Extinction Off Your Plate: a project of the Center for Biological Diversity. Machovina, Brian, et al. "Biodiversity conservation: The key is reducing meat consumption". Science of the Total Environment 536 (2015) 419-431 "Risk Management Evaluation for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations". U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2004Hance, Jeremy. "How humans are driving the sixth mass extinction". The Guardian. 20 October 2015 (New) Zielinski, Sarah. "Ocean Dead Zones Are Getting Worse Globally Due to Climate Change". Smithsonian.com. November 10, 2014 (New) Tilman, David, et al. "Agricultural sustainability and intensive production practices". Nature 418, 671-677. August 2002 (New) Wilcove, David S, et al. "Quantifying Threats to Imperiled Species in the United States". BioScience. Vol. 48, No. 8 (Aug., 1998) pp. 607-615 (New)
