General Discussion

Doremus

(7,273 posts)

21. Demand? If the ultimate goal is to feed hungry people we wouldn't be raising livestock at all.

Wed May 8, 2019, 04:58 PM

May 2019

Feed-to-food ratio is extremely poor, something like 10-1. Meaning for ever 10 calories of feed/energy we give to livestock we receive 1 calorie of food. If the grains currently used to feed livestock were instead used to feed people, we could erase world hunger. That's not an insignificant fact to be casually dismissed with "but bacon."

There are a few additional side benefits: fewer greenhouse gases, less cruelty and better health. Worthy goals I think.

The cruelties necessary to factory farming aren't occasional as you imply. They're daily occurrences, multi-thousand-a-day occurrences. We slaughter 39 million cows/yr. in this country. They're kept in feedlots, on concrete, in their own waste, forced to bear offspring which are then stripped away to live a life of misery. Bucolic farm life is a fallacy we want to hold on to to assuage our consciences as we stuff our faces.

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Photo of Newborn Calf Drinking Milk From a Hose Will Make You Rethink Dairy (*Warning graphic photo) [View all] Beringia May 2019 OP

Blessed are the cheesemakers. nycbos May 2019 #1

One of the reasons I am a vegan. MoonRiver May 2019 #2

I went vegan, too. Quemado May 2019 #77

hideous cruelty. thanks for providing facts. delisen May 2019 #3

Damnit, now I want some cheese. nt Dr Hobbitstein May 2019 #4

Yes and you feel safe saying that because it is not human Beringia May 2019 #5

Not sure if human cheese would taste good, but willing to try it. Dr Hobbitstein May 2019 #6

You can buy human breast milk cheese online. Blue_true May 2019 #9

Hmmm... Guess I'll give it a try. Dr Hobbitstein May 2019 #11

No! cannabis_flower May 2019 #28

Eeeewww! All I ever needed to know about mother's milk I learned from Mad Max ProudLib72 May 2019 #38

Just don't cut the cheese! zackymilly May 2019 #47

Thank you for some needed perspective..... EarnestPutz May 2019 #53

needed perspective? handmade34 May 2019 #55

Didn't respond to the original post. Responded to someone else's .... EarnestPutz May 2019 #65

The important thing is to consistently trivialize actual concerns. LanternWaste May 2019 #16

Nah, I just don't take propaganda from vegans seriously. Dr Hobbitstein May 2019 #18

not emotional manipulation handmade34 May 2019 #56

Keep telling yourself that Dr Hobbitstein May 2019 #64

Of course it is FBaggins May 2019 #79

We perpetrate a lot of horrible shit Codeine May 2019 #7

The mother may have died during childbirth... cynatnite May 2019 #8

I think it is standard to take away the calf, because the farmers want the cow's milk Beringia May 2019 #12

Not where I worked at... cynatnite May 2019 #14

A modern dairy cow produces way more milk than Drahthaardogs May 2019 #67

Some people are not aware that babies are separated from their mothers Beringia May 2019 #68

When they said "Forcibly Impregnated" I laughed my ass off Drahthaardogs May 2019 #69

They are forcibly impregnated Beringia May 2019 #70

Lol. Cows come in season and are receptive to breeding Drahthaardogs May 2019 #71

I think when someone says forcibly impregnated, they are referring to artificial insemination Beringia May 2019 #74

Veal is Milenniums older than the concept of Veganism, which is a late 20th century concept. Blue_true May 2019 #13

I've killed my share of chickens... cynatnite May 2019 #15

You turned city because you can go to the supermarket and the chicken is already dead and dressed Blue_true May 2019 #22

That was only a small reason... cynatnite May 2019 #27

My uncle was a worker-farmer. Blue_true May 2019 #33

Is your anecdotal experience a standard or an aberration within the industry? LanternWaste May 2019 #17

The area I lived at was fairly normal... cynatnite May 2019 #19

You are correct jcgoldie May 2019 #20

Demand? If the ultimate goal is to feed hungry people we wouldn't be raising livestock at all. Doremus May 2019 #21

You make a lot of good points, but also made one error, IMO. Blue_true May 2019 #24

One word: Beano nt Doremus May 2019 #45

Sorry for bumping this older thread but I just ran across this graphic Doremus May 2019 #46

What the graphic does not cover is the impact of people eating Blue_true May 2019 #48

faulty comparision handmade34 May 2019 #57

Maybe. But I know that when I eat salads (a lot), fruit (a lot) and any Blue_true May 2019 #59

No, not 'maybe'. Ruminants' methane production (mostly burps) from eating grass is far larger muriel_volestrangler May 2019 #66

There is no fiber in meat, that's why no gas. It sits in the intestines and rots until the body can Doremus May 2019 #80

I have direct experience that says eating the correct amount of meat works. Blue_true May 2019 #83

Without using livestock to cycle soil nutrients, you are left with synthetic fertilizers NickB79 May 2019 #42

It's still an energy loss. Leaving the land vacant is the better use not only Doremus May 2019 #43

wrong Kali May 2019 #52

Good point. Blue_true May 2019 #61

So we should starve people? Blue_true May 2019 #60

We starve people when we expend more energy in producing food than we receive in return. Doremus May 2019 #81

So what is your solution, other than people should not eat meat, which in itself Blue_true May 2019 #82

Actually, animal dung is very good, but. Blue_true May 2019 #49

There is nothing wrong with using animals for food. n/t Opel_Justwax May 2019 #10

It has been done all of our existence as a species. Blue_true May 2019 #25

culturally, that is what handmade34 May 2019 #58

Large numbers of people do eat dogs. Blue_true May 2019 #63

Wait, I don't understand... Victor_c3 May 2019 #23

Best option in all circumstances regarding animals...... Red Mountain May 2019 #30

I read your title as "from a horse" and didn't know what I was going to see. Cuthbert Allgood May 2019 #26

Humans are excellent at not thinking about the suffering behind products they eat, use and wear, WhiskeyGrinder May 2019 #29

true Red Mountain May 2019 #32

Most people are by nature unthinking. That does not make them evil in itself. Blue_true May 2019 #35

Actually, I grew up on a ranch and we had a butcher business Drahthaardogs May 2019 #73

Just one of the animal cruelty reasons I am vegan MLAA May 2019 #31

What about deforestation to grow more food plants like soybeans? Blue_true May 2019 #36

Hi Blue True (edited to add link) MLAA May 2019 #40

no it won't Kali May 2019 #34

For the record Red Mountain May 2019 #37

They take calves away from the mothers Beringia May 2019 #39

Male calves are quite useful Tarc May 2019 #51

Because mom cow can't deliver it in any other way than piping it through a hose... Doremus May 2019 #44

Bite Size Vegan Mendocino May 2019 #41

One out-of-context photo and editorializing form some vegan whackadoos Tarc May 2019 #50

ugh Demovictory9 May 2019 #54

Nobody here is going to contribute to a retirement home for unneeded cows Kaleva May 2019 #62

And eaten. Drahthaardogs May 2019 #72

rare Rambling Man May 2019 #75

Most folks know jack shit about Rambling Man May 2019 #76

Yep. n/t snpsmom May 2019 #78