Should The Consumption Of Meat Be Curtailed? Essay

As humanity becomes more civilized, many of us perceive that eating livestock is morally incorrect, but aren’t we are designed to be an omnivore? Our teeth and digestive system serve the purpose of breaking down animal and plant foods and to bring these important nutrients to every part of the body. Despite the fact that, in 2011, U.S. meat and poultry production reached more than 92.3 billion pounds, the ethic of killing and eating animals as well as the concern of the environmental burden caused by the production of meats is debatable. However, animal based diet is necessary for the human body to function properly and we can choose the meat produced from environmentally sustainable farms to avoid the moral ambiguity.

Meat has been a staple food in the diet of mankind since the early ages of civilization. In the article “Is Any Meat Good to Eat?” by Sarah Boesveld, she interviews author Jonathan Safran to share his opinion on eating meat and factory farming. He believes that “...if [people] just ate according to the values they already have, then factory farming would disappear.” Whether or not people realize the sources from which meat in modern day society comes from, they cannot deny the fact that meat is delectable. Sadly, many people who are aware of where their meat comes from will argue that it is unethical to eat meat that is grown purely to satisfy the hunger of people. The ethics of eating meat should not be considered because of the extreme

Veganism has grown into a widespread trend in the last 70 years; in fact, in the United States approximately 3% of the population reports that they do not eat meat and about a third of this group declare themselves as vegan (Singer and Mason 187). Factory farming is an intensive method of farming that results in inexpensive meat products at the expense of one’s health, the environment, and animals (“Factory Farms”) . Moreover, this form of farming has led to the slow destruction of the planet, the mistreatment of animals, and the increase of various health diseases. Veganism is increasing due to the exposure of the secondary effects caused by industrialized

Many people question the ethics of the meat industry as they face the challenges of production and quality to serve our growing population. As consumers become more informed on the industry, new data is being released to show the health benefits of animal protein in the human diet. Based upon this new data, many people are questioning whether they should cut meat out of their diet completely and are looking to find a way to eat meat as ethically as possible. For some concerned with the ethics of eating meat it strictly comes down to killing animals, but it can also start with how the animals are treated. While there is no way to make any industry completely ethical, there are ways to make informed choices which can lead to a more ethical approach to the industry and its consumers. As demand increases and society becomes more informed on the meat industry, people are finding that there are ways to consume meat ethically.

From past conversations on this deeply controversial and heavily debated subject, I knew from our class discussions that opinions would have a deep divide. When it came to Devin, Zach and I discussing it, Devin was the only one with which I disagreed. Therefore the bulk of this question will be in explaining his view, addressing it in turn, then my opinion on the subject.

It is estimated that the average American consumes 180 pounds of meat a year. That is double the global average. Over the years while our meat consumption increased, our lifestyles became more and more sedentary. So, it is no surprise that in America the top three leading causes of death are heart disease, cancer, and stroke. The cost to treat these diseases are breaking our health care system, and killing 1.4 million people a year (CDC, Death and Mortality). These diseases can be directly related to our current diet of excessive meat and sedentary lifestyles. Also, our high demand of meat is causing irreparable damage to our

Today, society has entered into some truly interesting yet important times. None more so that with regards to the origin of the food provisions people consume. Bringing a debate to the forefront of mainstream attention, in regards to the mass consumption of meat, and the ethical dilemmas faced with the current model of harvesting of meat, in particular the harvesting of beef cattle. Concurrently major scholars and research institutions, are developing studies and examining the current state of health to humans whereby they are comparing those who regularly consume meat, to those who abstain from animal products to varying degrees. While studies are in the infancy stages, enough progress has been shown to offer some basis of debate. Considering the health of the consumer of beef, or the people who eat it, offer two general yet major stakeholders in the debate of meat, and the first tiered look into the ethics of eating meat. Aside from the health of the consumer, the practice of which the animal is farmed is quintessential to the well being of the animals while influencing the economics of the industry. Modern animal harvesting, or the life cycle of the animal, offers a commercial source to a large portion of the country, affectionately known as the Heartland of America or the Midwest. All the while non-traditional animal friendly farms, where a multitude of animals live in cohabitation of each other, that convey the impression of an animal product-producing utopia, while an

In 2016 the United States Department of Agriculture otherwise known as the USDA, estimated that Americans ate an average of 54.3 pounds of beef, 92.1 pounds of chicken, and 50.4 pounds of pork, per person, per year. Today I’m going to be speaking to you about why the population of the world should stop buying from and supporting the meat and dairy industries. I’m going to show you why meat is not intended for our human anatomy, why vegetarianism and veganism is better for the ecosystem than an animal based diet and I will show you how almost everyone in this room is condoning a rape culture.

“ May our daily choices be a reflection of our deepest values, and may we use our voices to speak for those who need us most, those who have no voice, those who have no choice” ~Colleen Patrick Gourdea. Presently, in the United States there seems to have been a recent increase in the concern of the general health of the nation, environment and animal welfare. One of the most substantial indications of this fact relates to the rising number of people who are abstaining from animal-based food products. Similarly, with the rise of many social media outlets, in which people feel free to share information to the masses, many are beginning to catch wind of the controversy surrounding the meat and dairy

Livestock used to feed the world lives on a space that would fill the continent of Africa. The meat we consume needs to be limited for the world to move forward and cut back on the greenhouse gas emissions. The world never thinks about how the food they eat effects the world, we only care about how it

Since the beginning of time, civilization has been dependent upon hunting for survival. Hunting provided meat for individuals, families and tribes; it was essential for man’s survival. Today many animal rights groups, such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), rally to abolish hunting. In today’s society hunting may not be necessary for our survival, but hunting still provides many benefits to both man and the animal population.

Vegetarianism, is it just a fad, or will it continue to cultivate and grow more mainstream than it is today? All signs are indicating that it will, indeed, continue to grow. “As many as 3.2% to 6% of the U.S. adult population is a vegetarian” (Parker 1). If one loves life, why not try vegetarianism? Having a vegetarian diet not only saves animals, but also improves health and uses less of our planet’s diminishing resources.

According to the United Nations Populations Fund, US citizens eat on average 260 pounds of meat per person. In the past five years the argument that mass-produced meat is a key cause in manmade global warming has gained a great deal of steam. Many environmentalists have been pushing the idea of vegetarianism by pointing out what is wrong with meat-eating. Emissions, feed supply for animals, and animal welfare are what James McWilliams argues in Bellying up to Environmentalism why meat should not be consumed. He writes that, “it takes a gallon of gasoline to produce a pound of conventional beef…and if all of the grain that is used to feed animals went to people, you could feed China and India.(McWilliams A21)” Ranchers, farmers, and

First and foremost, by raising animals for food and clothing, we are contributing to an unbalance in ecosystems. In “Livestock a major threat to the environment” published in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) website, Christopher Matthews presents the deleterious impacts that the raising of livestock have on the environment. He states, “As forests are cleared to create new pastures, it is a major driver of deforestation, especially in Latin America where […] 70% of former forests in the Amazon have been turned over to grazing.” It is imperative to understand the adverse effects that deforestation causes in the ecosystems, because according to an article published by National Geographic, titled “Deforestation”, 80% of Earth’s land animals and plants live in forests, and many cannot survive the deforestation that destroys their home. By turning our forests over to grazing, we are accelerating the extinction of plant species and animals that depend on these plants. The fact that we are destroying the home of millions of species implies that these species will no longer have a place to live, a place to hide from predators, or a place to find food. The loss of several species contributes to biodiversity loss, which is when humans alter the environment and threaten the variety of species in a particular ecosystem. It’s important to understand that every organism in an ecosystem has a purpose and a role that benefits the environment, and most importantly

All over the world, livestock is raised and killed for our needs. During this process, they release more greenhouse gas emissions than transportation. Livestock has taken over ⅓ of the land on Earth and consumes most of the United States’ water. Livestock is slowly destroying oceans, the atmosphere, and rainforests; animal agriculture is a big contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and causes global climate change. There should be a regulation for the population of livestock so they aren’t taking over land and water, and also so there won’t be so much gas released into the atmosphere from these animals.