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Effects of animal agriculture on environment study
Effects of animal agriculture
Effects of animal agriculture
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Alisha Torres Kathy Patterson English H 103 9 March, 2023 The Persuasion Behind Cowspiracy Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn, producers of the documentary film Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, are on a mission to reveal the truth about animal agriculture's impact on the atmosphere and the industry's lack of action toward its contribution to climate change. The filmmakers create a compelling argument to cut back on meat products, addressing the world's sustainability issues. They use many statistics, interviews, and visual imagery to persuade the audience to act on farming and agriculture.
Grazing and growing feed for livestock now occupy 70% of all agricultural land and 30% of the ice-free terrestrial surface of the planet. If these current events continue, meat production is predicted to double between the turn of the 21st century and 2050. Yet already, the Earth is being overpowered by livestock that consume massive quantities of energy and resources, whose wastes contaminate waterways and farmlands, and when eaten excessively, degrade our health. Pollan makes a considerable point when discussing concentrated animal feedlot operations, “The economic logic of gathering so many animals together to feed them cheap corn in CAFOs is hard to argue with; it has made meat, which used to be a special occasion in most American homes” (pg. 67, An Omnivore's Dilemma).
The U.S. agricultural industry can now produce unlimited quantities of meat and grains at remarkably cheap prices. But it does so at a high cost to the environment, animals and humans”
Experts recommend that adults eat just over half a pound of meat per week to help reduce their risk for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and/or strokes. “We don’t eat animal products for sufficient nutrition, we eat them to have an odd form of malnutrition, and It’s killing us” (Bittman). There’s a simple way to reduce not only our calorie intake, but our carbon footprint as well: “less meat, less junk food, more plants” (Bittman). While Bittman makes some very compelling points about how much of the meat we produce and subsequently waste, he fails to take into account the affordability of meat because of it’s mass production, as well as the simple facts that most people lack the time needed to produce meals with fruits and
Have you ever went to a zoo or a public place that had a sign that said," Do not feed animals at anytime". I agree with that sign a 100 percent. Opposing claims state nothing is wrong with feeding wild birds. People do not think it is a big deal to feed wild birds in their backyards. Some people think it is fun or beautiful to watch birds eat food in front of them.
Several tests on animals, for things like cosmetics, involve giving the animals harmful substances on their bare skin, and placing drops in their eyes without pain relief. Even Though animals can not speak what they are feeling, they all go through excruciating pain when labs perform tests on them. Animals around the world that are used in labs often get treated like they are nothing, and are just a test subject. Throughout their life, they will be tortured many times and abused without any consideration that they are actually in pain. Many times animals will die in the labs or they will get killed after they are not needed anymore.
Animal testing goes as far back to greek philosophers such as Aristotle (384 – 322 BC) and Erasistratus (304 – 258 BC). Whom once performed testing on animals to advance behavior of something or who aspired to alter brain activity. However there was scientists such as Galen (129 – 199 / 217 AD), who used animals in order to attempt to improve various human activity within the body. Specifically focusing on cures and treatment for those who don't have them. Later, Ibn Zuhr began to use animal testing to benefit humans in which he would perform surgeries on them to ensure that the procedures would not harm humans.
The documentary Cowspiracy, overall, wants to tell us about the truth behind animal agriculture, which heavily affects the survival of our planet. Basically, the documentary said that animal agriculture is responsible for most of the greenhouse gases that lead to global warming, which also affects our planet. The goal of this documentary is to make us believe that the meat industry, and by extension the fast food industry, are the causes that lead to most of our environmental issues. Also, the documentary stated that the amount of water that is used for cows and other livestock is way too much and our planet will gradually face a lack of water. The solution that they propose is just to become vegetarians, which will solve everything.
New studies are being published on the ethical failings of researchers to adequately represent data in a variety of contexts. This could have serious implications for the veracity of certain information germane to deliberations on whether or not studies should progress to the next stage, among other things. One new American study, for example, has found that placebo groups are used often in clinical trials despite a lack of appropriate guidelines for how they can be used, and the study shows how problematic that is. Meanwhile, a German and Canadian study is showing what is perhaps an even bigger deal, which is that inadequacies in the designs of animal studies as well as insufficient reporting of said studies are proving to be a circumvention
Each year in the United States, millions of animals are hurt or killed in the name of science by private institutions, household companies, cosmetics companies, government agencies, and scientific centers. These companies put these animals though harsh and inhumane conditions for testing. Medical testing should not harm the lives of many harmless animals because it is ineffective, irrelevant, and cruel. Animal testing is outdated and ineffective. In the article,”Stop animal testing - it's not just cruel, it's ineffective”, it reads,”There are safer alternatives to animal testing.
“We have cured mice of cancer for decades and it simply did not work in human beings.” -Dr. Richard Klausner, former director of the US National Cancer Institute. Animal testing is a one of the most controversial topics in the world. Animal testing is not necessary because testing the products on one species and then using the products on another species changes the results.
Animal Testing: Justifying the Science Modern advances in science and health are a result of animal experimentation. According to the California Biomedical Research Association, “Why Are Animals Necessary in Biomedical Research?” “For more than a hundred years virtually every medical breakthrough...has been the direct result of research using animals”(1). Even though this is true, organizations like PETA and others are still against the fact that animal research is good for the world. From humans better understanding life threatening diseases like cancer or HIV, to learning more about Heartworms in canines.
While there are numerous pros and cons of animal testing, the scientific benefits overshadows the cons against the subject. In many minds, animal testing is viewed as an unfortunate topic, and I acknowledge that, but in my opinion, animal testing is a vital role in medical advancements. Animals and humans are very similar, we have the same organ systems that perform similar tasks. Throughout the last decade animal research was a critical component in nearly every medical breakthrough. Multiple diseases that once killed millions of people every year are now either treatable or have been abolished altogether.
According to a study published in Nature, scientists believe by 2050 eighty percent increase in global greenhouse gases could be avoided, if human diets were equally mediterranean, pescatarian, and vegetarian. Truthfully, less animal products are what is best for the future of the planet, eliminating dairy and egg products would reduce emissions the most as confirmed by Marco Springmann
Meat production produces enormous amounts of CO2 in the air, which is a major cause of global warming, and are thus a reason to stop
