Cattle Farming is Bad For The Environment

The Amazon Rainforest is being cleared of an area the size of a soccer field every minute. Most of this is driven by cattle farming clearing forest to provide grazing land for cattle and land for growing feed crops. When it comes to climate pollution? our food system is responsible for more than a quarter of all emissions released and most of that comes from cattle farming. Cattle farming simply is a form of business aimed raising cow, bulls, oxen and calves for various purpose the most prominent dairy beef and leather .Before 20th century milk was done by hand on small farms and the beginning in the 20th century the milk was done in a large scale? of dairy farms with new ideas including rotary parlours the milking pipeline? and automatic milking system that were commercially developed in the early 1990s.

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What are the types of cattle farming

?● Dairy cows?

Dairy cows are all female because the industry wants them to give birth and produce is taken to be marketed for consumption by humans. Basically cattle farmers breed Dairy cows for the purpose a large quantity and jersey breed are usually on Dairy farms to keep the production of milk Constant a cow has to continue lactating.

● Beef cattle?

Beef cattle are bulls and calves raised to be killed for meat . Many of the calves are turned into veal by being killed at 2 or 3 days old and sometimes even at just 2 or 3 hours. The rest are raised to be fattened for Beef just as with dairy cows Beef cattle are selectively bred to help produce and sell different commodities such as learner meat most Beef cattle eventually put in enclosures in feedlot before slaughter.?

● Leather?

Often thought of as a byproduct of the dairy and meat industries, leather has in fact become one of the main sources of profit for cattle farmers. Leather is the skin of a cow, bull or calf. It is usually young calves that are killed for their soft and unmarked skin.

● Housing??

Housing for cattle needs to fulfil many requirements, including cleanliness, provision of personal space and proper ventilation. But in reality the cattle industry hardly meets these needs. Living a life of confinement, dairy cattle are kept in unsanitary conditions and are forced to inhale toxic fumes. Living with little personal space, many of these cows spend much of their time rooted to one spot with just one imposed purpose? to be put to use for humans.

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● Grazing?

Cattle farming needs ample pasture space for grazing. After a few months, calves destined to be sold for their meat then have to move to a feedlot to be fattened. The problem with the feed given to cattle is that their diet is mostly focused on producing more milk or better meat that’s it.

● Handling?

Cows need to be handled in a way that prevents stress or injury, and that ensures their overall well-being. But quite the opposite tends to be the case in cattle farms. Many dairy cows are milked using machines, which among other things cause mastitis leading to pus in milk.

● Reproduction?

Reproduction ensures a steady supply of milk and calves for leather and veal. However, cows will rarely become pregnant every year, given the mental and physical toll that pregnancy takes on their bodies. Hence cattle farming management involves artificial insemination to get the Cow pregnant every year..

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What is the biggest problem with cattle farming……?

Cattle farming is a highly significant source of greenhouse gases, and thus a major cause of climate change as well as cattle farming has also often displaced local communities who have ensured more regenerative and balanced uses of land in their environments. It causes air and water pollution.Finally, cattle farming depends on clearing the land of forests, which is the habitat of many animals, thus threatening biodiversity.?

●Dirty water?

A cow produces anywhere from 12 kilograms of manure per day for a baby cow to 62 kilograms per day and up for dairy cows. Cattle waste contains a lot of nitrogen, which can contaminate water sources around farms over time.

● Overuse of antibiotics

The easiest way for cattle farms to ensure the good health of animals is by feeding them antibiotics. The antibiotics may boost methane production in cattle, meaning the release of more of the powerful greenhouse gas into the atmosphere. Antibiotic overuse has a more obviously devastating unintended consequence for humans too, leading to the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.?

●Global warming?

Global warming is one of the clearest aspects of climate change. Temperatures rise as greenhouse gas emissions increase and heat is trapped in the atmosphere. Methane and nitrous oxide are among the most powerful greenhouse gases Grass-fed cattle are often considered to be a sustainable solution for global warming. However, not only do they release emissions, but they also use a lot of land and run the risk of overgrazing.?

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Cattle Farming Facts And Stats

● 1.49 billion? cattle being used to produce different commodities

●Humans take 841.84 million tonnes of milk per year and Beed 71.61 million tonnes.

● Agriculture takes up almost half of the world's habitat land and 77% of this land is not even being used to grow crops for human consumption.

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What can we do?

● Improve manure management Anaerobic Digesters convert manure into biogas ( methane ) which can be used for energy.? This prevents methane from entering the atmosphere directly.

● Breeding and Genetic modification

● Reduction in water use

water recycling – reusing water for multiple purpose on the farms

efficient irrigation – using drip or sprinkler irrigation can reduce the wastage of water in feed crops cultivation

● lab grown meat

● plant based meat