The meat of the global food crisis

Weis, Tony

doi:10.1080/03066150.2012.752357

Cited by 102 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Chickens are by far the land animals the most frequently consumed by humans in the world, accounting for more than 80% of all flesh consumption (Weis 2013). In Australia, for example, the per capita consumption of chickens increased from half a bird per year in 1950 to 27 birds per year in 2010 (Wallis 2014).…”

Section: The Lives Of Chickensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whereas the area that is devoted to growing maize has not increased as much as that used to grow soybeans, it has been estimated that it has grown by around 50% in the last 50 years (Weis 2013). The increases in yields of these two main animal feeds do not simply reflect increases in acreage-the former in fact surpass the latter increases, as global yield increases of soybeans and maize have, respectively, octupled and quadrupled over this same period of the last 50 years (Weis 2013). Most of the soybeans that are grown worldwide are crushed, producing 18.6% soy oil and 78.7% soy meal (as well as some waste), and-although the oil is used in a wide range of products (including biofuels)-almost all the meal is currently used to feed farmed animals (van Gelder et al 2008).…”

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is a growing concern as the amount of arable land that is being used to feed farmed animals is increasing rapidly. This is caused by the following factors: the explosion in the consumption of animal products; the fact that the greatest growth is not seen in the consumption of ruminants, but in the consumption of products from pigs and chickens ('monogastrics') who depend almost exclusively on feed in dominant farming systems; and the fact that a growing number of ruminants are being fed arable crops as substantial components of their diets (Weis 2013).…”

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The country with the third largest production of body parts from land animals (with a production exceeding 20 million tonnes annually in recent years) and the second largest production of soybeans (with a production of 82 million tonnes in 2013), Brazil provides an interesting case study of the impact of the farmed animals' sector upon deforestation (Oliveira 2015;Weis 2013). The sector's expansion is the main cause of deforestation in the world's largest tropical rainforest, the Brazilian Amazon (Nepstad et al 2006).…”

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Animal (De)liberation: Should the Consumption of Animal Products Be Banned?

Deckers

2016

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Section: The Lives Of Chickensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Land Use and Degradationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Animal (De)liberation: Should the Consumption of Animal Products Be Banned?

Deckers

2016

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Farming cattle in the tropics: Transnational science and industrializing pastures in Brazil

Nehring

2023

Plants People Planet

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Societal Impact StatementSociety is increasingly concerned over the environmental impact of diets. Much of this concern is over the environmentally destructive nature of meat production, especially beef and especially in the Amazon. This article aims to understand the production of beef in Brazil through the understudied perspective of forage grasses. In doing so, the article traces who was involved in the importation and improvement of forage grasses in Brazil, why they were involved, and what the consequences of their actions were. By centering forage grasses, we can better understand the potential consequences of seemingly unimportant plant breeding efforts.Summary Beef is viewed by many as one of the more environmentally destructive foods today. Whether it is deforestation in the Amazon or concentrated feedlots, the rancher and the cow have come to epitomize the dangers of a global industrial food system. This article looks at the industrialization of beef cattle from another angle, a bit closer to the ground. It looks at the role and circulation of plants and plant breeders in the expansion of beef cattle in the Brazilian tropics. The article draws on documents collected from the institutional archives of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation, known by its Portuguese acronym Embrapa and the Rockefeller Archive Center. Additional archival documents were acquired by a personal contact. Embrapa was established in 1973, but its archives contain documents from Brazilian agricultural research agencies from as far back as 1952. Documents from the Rockefeller Archive Center include research bulletins and reports from Nelson Rockefeller's IBEC Research Institute (IRI), which conducted research on forage grasses from the 1950s until the 1970s. The article puts forth the argument that imported and improved forage grasses made large‐scale cattle ranching environmentally viable and economically profitable in Brazil. One type of grass in particular, Brachiaria, was central in propelling Brazil as the world's largest producer of beef and underpinning perhaps the most environmentally and socially destructive cattle ranching system in the world. Brachiaria was a key biological and technological input to further entrench longstanding structural inequalities of land ownership. One of the key conclusions of this article is that perspectives from the margins can be illustrative of how seemingly unimportant research (forage grass breeding) can have massive consequences as part of a broader socio‐environmental system.

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Let Earth Rebound! Conservation’s New Imperative

Crist

2019

Conservation

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The meat of the global food crisis

Cited by 102 publications

References 37 publications

Animal (De)liberation: Should the Consumption of Animal Products Be Banned?

Animal (De)liberation: Should the Consumption of Animal Products Be Banned?

Farming cattle in the tropics: Transnational science and industrializing pastures in Brazil

Let Earth Rebound! Conservation’s New Imperative

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