The environmental a.ka. social costs of driving SUVs, or other larger-than-necessary vehicles is commonly known. What is much less known is that it is even worse to eat meat. I really donʻt care about animal rights. A cow is stupid as hell, and a chicken doesnʻt even need its head to run around. But industrialized meat production and mass consumption is by far, in my opinion, the biggest thing that people are not really (ok, just starting to) talk about.
Worldwide, food prices are causing riots. Yet everyone is blaming this on ethonal, biodiesel and commodities traders. Very few are pointing at the huge demand for grains created by the growing of billions of pounds of meat. It takes between 1300 calories and 600 calories, on average, to grow each 100 calories of meat. (This should be obvious–the animal has to live, too) Beef, pork, and deep sea fish are more energy intensive; poultry less so.
The math here is painfully obvious. That hamburger you ate? Instead, twelve people could have had fried-rice. That roasted chicken from the other day? Seven people could have had pasta and veggies if the calories went straight to people instead of going to an industrial feedlot.
In reference to the title of this post, most people consider the SUV to be the king of environmental evils. It is slightly more complicated than that. Because of the horrible inefficiency of eating meat, the carbon footprint of walking for a meat-eater is actually higher than if they were to drive their SUV. (Bicycles are more efficient regardless). Walking is only more efficient if the person is a vegetarian.
Surprised?
Thereʻs also the nasty-ass poo pollution these factories make, along with the vegetarian-is-healthier argument. Itʻs strange to explain to people that I think meat tastes good, and I really donʻt care for animal rights, yet Iʻve been a veggie for many years now. PETA is never going to get a significant amount of people to be veggies no matter how many naked hot chicks they get or how gross that video was. But if it gets spun as a human rights issue (and itʻs getting there), we might see some progress.
(technology may eventually have a solution, but for now, make yourself a delicious bean burrito.)
Marc B
Brad L
Guardian article along the same lines. Some interesting comments, especially about meat-eating as a status symbol in developing countries – there’s a long way to go…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/apr/15/food.biofuels
another good source of information on this is the UN report called Lifestocks Long Shadow.
And, FYI, cows are extremely intelligent. I just so happen to do work on non-human animal intellience. Most cows are better at thinking things through than most people. Example: A mother cow separated from her calf at the livestock auction, escaped her new farm and made her way across 30 miles of unknown territory to be with her nursing calf. She was found with him at his new farm the next morning. He was nursing.
How many humans can find their way across unknown territory that fast without a destination address and a gps?