Help Farmers Build a Better Future
In order to help farmers build a better future we must make changes in our personal energy use. That means our diet. This is easier for communities to achieve together than for individuals alone. First our culture needs to change. Second we must help our farmers build a better future, but in a different way. Farming is the life blood of the human race. It starts here. They really can become guardians of the countryside.
Meat Eating and Dairy Consumption
At the heart of our planetary difficulties is the worlds consumption of meat. Ideally for our world we would all be vegan. It is that simple. However that is not what we suggest at Earth and Leaf. We just need to eat much less meat of certain types (notably beef) and change agricultural practices to help farmers build a better future. In certain countries that means consumption must drop dramatically.
For our livestock farmers in the UK this is a dramatic change, especially in the uplands and in dairy farming areas. In order to help farmers build a better future we must work with them on just transition. At Earth and Leaf we are launching a particular project that does exactly that:
The Shepherds of the Trees Project. Click here to learn more.
Why?
Sixty per cent of the total weight of mammals on our globe are farmed or herded animals: Pigs, cattle, sheep and goats. Humans and their pets are 34% and a tiny 6% are truly wild animals.
The cattle are either dairy or beef stock. In the case of a beef animal the process of turning one kilo of vegetable material into one kilo of living meat is given the scientific term of Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR). A good ratio for a beef animal is 6 to 1, but usually it is 8 to 1 or more. After that, approximately 50% of a carcass is inedible, the skeleton, many internal organs, gut contents, the head and feet etc. Therefore the Food Conversion Ratio to edible meat doubles to 16 to 1. In a grazing animal the process takes two years thus making the ration 32 to 1 per annum. Evidently, this is impossible to justify when resources such as land are scarce.
See our article on “Dissecting a Cow”.
Beef and dairy farming also produces lots of Methane, a dangerous greenhouse gas. We must do something about this and use just transition to help our farmers build a better future. Essentially this means keeping no dairy cows and far fewer beef cattle. In future our milk should come from goats and we should use much less. There are important side effects from following this policy. Cheese is problematic for the population in terms of health and the external cost that places on the NHS (in the UK).
Some economies are very dependent upon production of red meat and also the arable feed products for these animals plus of course the world’s huge population of chickens.
The British Isles
These islands are self sufficient in Beef and consumption is falling. There is therefore plenty of scope to use just transition to help farmers build a better future.
We produce much more lamb than we consume. But, the story is complicated. We export and import lamb. Consumption is falling. Lets help our farmers build a better future by giving them a secure income in return for producing environmental economic good.
There’s a reason this little fella appears all over our site. He’s a traditional Belted Galloway. They are a relatively small breed of cattle, native to South West Scotland. They are very hardy and can live outside all year round. They are ideal for extensive upland grazing and perfect for the Shepherds of the Trees project.
Change
No-one really likes change.
Just Transition for Beef and Dairy Farmers
Of course, supermarkets will have to change too. They can also help farmers build a better future. Because they will not be able to sell red meat forever as a volume product. They will take that in their stride. We must start once more to support our high street specialist butchers again and help farmers build a better future.
Our Shepherds of the Trees Initiative will Help Farmers Build a Better Future
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