dietary supplements.. for cows

I do not know what to say about this latest article.  I am left speechless.

I think we can all agree that livestock is terrible for the environment.  Why?  Because it damages land from over-grazing.  It contaminates the water from waste runoff.  It creates super bacteria because of all the antibiotics injected into the animals.  It makes us fat and sick because the cattle are raised in a manner not intended.  And, the animals release methane gas, a very dangerous greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere.

Let’s talk about this last one for a brief moment.  

Cattle.  Cattle are the biggest culprit in releasing methane into the atmosphere.  I get the impression they walk around farting.  OK.  So… I am going to ask you a personal question…. why is it that you pass gas?  It’s cause something didn’t sit well with your stomach or intestines, right?

So, why do you think animals pass gas?  I think it is safe to assume that it is because they have eaten something that doesn’t sit well with their bodies.  Which is the case.

Cattle are ruminants.  They have evolved to digest what we can’t.  Grass.  But, it isn’t economical to feed them grass, and we have a surplus of corn.  So, we put two and two together and started giving cattle grain.  And now they have upset stomachs and they fart and we have bad air. Ta Da!

So… how do you think we should fix this?  You would think it would be as simple as “let them eat grass!”  But no.  We are going to start giving cattle fish oil supplements, according to the Environmental News Network.

I don’t know…. I’m so over the meat thing.  I really wish people would just stop eating it.  Or, start raising them correctly so the animals aren’t treated cruelly.

quite controversial, but the right decision

Germany did something very bold today in the fight against climate change.  Something that we will more than likely never see in this country, but should be done.  Germany’s Federal Environmental Agency urged its citizens to dramatically reduce its intake of meat, suggesting they go back to pre-war norms of eating meat only on special occasions, according to the Guardian.

There has been a lot of data released about the extraordinary amount of harm the livestock industry puts onto our climate being the most energy intensive form of “farming”.  Most accounts suggest that the meat industry accounts for a fifth of the greenhouse gases emitted into our atmosphere.  It is a result of the chemicals, transportation fuels and methane released from the animals, as well as the clear cutting of forests for land for the cattle to graze.

This decision is being embraced by many in the environmental movement.  There are few, if any, countries that have publicly acknowledged that our current methods of meat production are unsustainable and must be stopped.  

The United States has huge meat lobbying interests in Washington.  When nutritionists at the USDA and with the AMA have ever suggested reducing the meat intake in the food pyramid, millions of dollars have been spent in discrediting the data and ensuring that our process will never change.  The lobbyists have even succeeded in wooing the FDA to pass the allowance of the strongest of antibiotics for animal use and the lack of labeling for genetically engineered cattle.

The impact of the meat industry is even starting to be seen in ways other than the impact on the environment.  Antibiotics are being found in produce due to its presence in the water supply. Additionally, bacteria are getting more and more resistant to antibiotics, resulting in people having a harder time fighting infections.

While there are grassroots movements trying to educate the United States public on the harm of the meat industry, it is relatively weak by comparison.  Vegetarianism and other such diets are seen as “abnormal” and alternative lifestyles, when in reality they are the most eco-conscious way to eat and live.

All in all, Germany has done the right thing in suggesting to its citizenry to eat less meat.  All countries should follow this example and we may have a fighting chance against global destabilization.

wholly s–t

Consumers, wary of harmful affects, have been shying away from meat and dairy products that may contain antibiotics.  However, new research is showing that they may be ingested in our produce, even organic.

Because of the conditions that livestock are raised, meat producers have long used antibiotics to foster mass growth and stave off infections and and other diseases that are a result of the confined living quarters.  The metabolism process of the antibiotics resulted in high percentages being found in the meat, itself.  

Unfortunately, many produce farmers use the excrement from those treated animals as their fertilizer.  The antibiotic residue released in the manure can be absorbed by produce. 

A study done using corn, green onions and lettuce found that the in as little as six weeks, the mature plants had absorbed the antibiotics used in the raising of the livestock.  And, as the percentage of antibiotics in the manure increased, an equal amount present in the produce increased.

Around 90 percent of these drugs that are administered to animals end up being excreted either as urine or manure,” said Holly Dolliver, a member of the Minnesota research team and now a professor of crop and soil sciences at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. “A vast majority of that manure is then used as an important input for 9.2 million hectares of (U.S.) agricultural land.”

Manure, widely used as a substitute for chemical fertilizer, adds nutrients that help plants grow. It is often used in organic farming.

Obviously, the clearest public health implication from treating livestock with antibiotics is the development of resistant bacteria that reduces the effectiveness of human medicine. Past studies have shown overuse of antibiotics reduces their ability to cure infections. Over time, certain antibiotics are rendered ineffective.  Most physicians also agree that the over use of antibiotics is the reason for the increasing numbers of asthma and allergies in children over the last 20 years.

Tainted manure does not stop at infecting our produce.  It is also able to be absorb through the soil into our water supply.  Another likely scenario is making all the other animals in the ecosystem (field mice, rabbits and foxes), that forage in the fields, resistant to antibiotics.  The affect is either over-population or transmission of a deadly bacteria through contact with one of these animals.

The problem is expected to get worse as the FDA has relaxed the requirements surrounding the raising of livestock.  Just recently, they approved the use of cefquinome for animals.  This is one of the strongest antibiotics on the market.  Who knows what the result would be of a microbe resistant to this.

As always, the best solution is to go to Farmer’s Markets or grow your own produce.  In either case, you can choose what goes into your body either by controlling it yourself or choosing a farmer that most closely follows a growth system you support.

The study can be found HERE, via Environmental Health News

egg-cellent

I will admit that ever since I have read… well, anything by Michael Pollan… I have been wanting my own chickens. I know that it seems silly to you, but when you imagine for a few seconds the condition these animals are raised, you stop eating them. And I love eggs. I love eggs to scrambled and poached and omeletted. I love eggs in my cakes and brownies and ice creams.

I currently buy them from my farmer’s market, but I have to say, that is the one item that I have found to be quite costly.

So, I want a chicken coop.

HERE is an article about states becoming more lenient on restrictions for having backyard coops. I guess more and more people feel the same way as I do.