Land Degradation & Grazing
6 KEY POINTS – Land Degradation & Grazing 1. Globally, grazing is understood to be the number one driver of land degradation. 2. U.S. grazing lands are undergoing pervasive and accelerating degradation; a broad and conservative estimate is that one-third or more of U.S. grazing lands are degraded. 3. Because grazing makes up the single […]
Land Degradation & Animal Ag
KEY POINTS – Land Degradation & Animal Ag 1. Land degradation is generally defined as declining conditions of soil and water resources and the loss of biodiversity; agriculture is understood to be the primary driver globally. 2. The share of U.S lands degraded is obscured due to limited national assessments, a lack of clarity from […]
Global Land Degradation and Agriculture
5 KEY POINTS – Global Land Degradation 1. International organizations generally define land degradation as human-induced declines in the conditions of soil, water, and biodiversity. 2. Land degradation is difficult to assess due to the varying definitions, the complex underlying factors, and a range of assessment methodologies. 3. A reasonable estimate is that about a […]
Infographic – Grazing & Land Degradation
This infographic offers a few key figures on the amount of U.S. land used for grazing and the degradation of both federally and privately owned grazing lands, as well as a snapshot of the how degradation is likely to continue. to download, click here
Inside Corn – How much really goes to animal feed and why it matters
Corn is the largest U.S. crop by acreage and production volume. It is the quintessential industrialized monoculture crop, mostly grown on tracts of more than 500 acres. The corn production system has enormous negative impacts on land, water, soil, and biodiversity. We pay this environmental toll mostly in the service of factory farming.
Perspectives on Subsidies
What are our key perspectives on animal ag subsidies? We conclude that animal ag subsidies are not a central pillar holding up the animal ag industry. Eliminating subsidies would not significantly affect the availability, retail pricing, or consumption levels of animal-sourced foods.[1] Other government policies are exponentially more important to the industry’s stability, sales volume, […]
Animal Ag Subsidies
What share of federal agricultural subsidies supports the factory farming system? We broadly estimate that at least 50% of all federal agricultural subsidies supports the factory farming system.[1] This includes payments to livestock and poultry producers and to crop producers for that share of crops specifically used for animal feed.[2] See, Estimated Cost of Major […]
Agricultural Subsidies Overview
What is a subsidy? A subsidy is “Monetary assistance granted by a government to a person or group in support of an enterprise regarded as being in the public interest.”[1] A more nuanced definition explains that a subsidy is “any government assistance that (i) allows consumers to purchase goods and services at prices lower than […]
Loss of the wild ones – no room on the farm
Wild mammal populations are about one-seventh the size of pre-human days, as measured by total weight. Humans and farmed animals now dominate the earth, with wild land mammals just 2% of total land mammal biomass.
Land Use for Animal Ag
5 KEY POINTS – Land Use for Animal Ag 1. About 55% of all harvested cropland is devoted to crops specifically used for animal feed – 175 million acres. 2. Including grazing, ~80% of all agricultural land is devoted to animal agriculture. 3. About 45% of the total land area of the lower 48 states […]