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Earth: 29% Land, 71% Ocean Land: 71% Habitable, 29% Not Agricultural: 2.3% of all habitable land Livestock: 8% of all habitable land Looking at the stats, y
by achow 6y ago
Earth: 29% Land, 71% Ocean
Land: 71% Habitable, 29% Not
Agricultural: 2.3% of all habitable land
Livestock: 8% of all habitable land
Looking at the stats, your question is very valid. We can drastically increase food production by marginally decreasing land dedicated for livestock and/or utilizing unused habitable land.
Source: https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2019/11/Global-land-use-graphic-800x506.png https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2019/11/Global-land-use-g...
- fnord123 6y agoThose stats also do not indicate how much the agricultural land is being used to grow animal feed. In fact if a crop is grown but inadequate quality for selling for humans, it is sold at a massive discount as animal feed. Reducing the variability in crop yields, as vertical farming should do, should make the 2.3% more efficient. We need to be careful about how we reduce livestocks globally. Naively interfering in the market such that the price of meat goes up could be disastrous as Brazilian farmers could accelerate the slashing of rain forests to make way for more profitable livestock farming.
- kitd 6y agoThose stats also do not indicate how much the agricultural land is being used to grow animal feed. I don't have links, sorry, but IIRC it's about 33% used for animal feed.
- kitd 6y agoReplying to myself, in 2014 it was: 1. Feeding people - 55% 2. Feeding animals - 36% 3. Biofuels - 9% https://www.vox.com/2014/8/21/6053187/cropland-map-food-fuel-animal-feed https://www.vox.com/2014/8/21/6053187/cropland-map-food-fuel...
- pjc50 6y agoMuch of the livestock land is steep or rocky. The same obstacles to drawing a plough across it present to building buildings on it. Unless you're prepared to invest a lot of energy flattening it.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- tokai 6y agoIn Denmark 62% of all land is used for agriculture. That's not only the habitable but all of Denmark's area. Any area that is able to produce is already in use. https://lbst.dk/fileadmin/user_upload/NaturErhverv/Filer/Landbrug/Genetiske_ressourcer/Denmark_SoWBFA_FINAL.pdf https://lbst.dk/fileadmin/user_upload/NaturErhverv/Filer/Lan...